Unexpected
by Iamafanoftoomanythingstoname
Summary: In most of the stories, the Curtis Brothers have a heartless social worker who is always on Darry's case or something of the sort. But what happens when their social worker falls in love with Darry instead of calling him an unfit guardian? Darry/OC
1. New Social Worker

**A/N: I bet you've all read some sort of 'Pony gets taken away' story. I've certainly read enough of those, so I decided to shake it up a bit. S.E Hinton owns The Outsiders. The only things I own are my idea for this story, Ms. Jensen, Rebecca, Chris, Mr. Johnson, and Mr. Richards. And I am keeping Dally and Johnny alive in this one. Enjoy! ^.^**

I was sitting in the armchair trying to relax when I remembered that it was time for the state to come and check on us. We haven't cleaned up yet, and this house is a mess! I stood up and called my brothers into the room.

"What is it now, Darry?" Ponyboy asked, obviously still annoyed that I had grounded him since he came home too late last night. I could hardly believe that he did that after what happened last time. Does he ever learn? And he wonders why I was always so worried about him, and not Sodapop. Soda actually uses his head. That's weird, I realized. Pony's smart but doesn't use his head. Soda was… well, I don't want to say dumb. Let's just say his grades weren't that good. I turned my attention back to my youngest brother.

"Watch it, Ponyboy. It ain't my fault that you came home late. You know you're supposed to be in by midnight. Anyway, that guy from the state is gonna be here in a few hours, so we need to clean up this mess." Mr. Richards was a real jerk. He was always looking for something that I had done wrong so he could split us up. Why? I have no idea. Maybe it's because we're greasers. I'm surprised that he hasn't given us a break because Pony was sort of a hero for saving those kids. I figure it was either because he hates kids, or he doesn't care. Probably both. That really made me mad.

"But, Dar… Two-Bit and Dally made most of the mess. Then Steve and Soda were playing cards, and Soda got mad because Steve was cheating, so they started throwing cards at each other," Pony said.

"Tattle-tale," Soda mumbled. I raised an eyebrow. I suddenly felt like they were younger and I was Dad.

"I don't care who made the mess. It just needs to be cleaned up. And put on some nicer clothes." They groaned. We almost had to wear suits to make that guy happy. I didn't like it either, but we had to. I walked into my room to put on nicer clothes. I didn't really need to clean my room since I always kept it neat, and I didn't let anyone else in there. I heard the phone ring about fifteen minutes later. Sodapop got to it before I did.

"Hello? … Yeah, he's here. Darry! It's the social services." I cocked an eyebrow and took the phone from him.

"Hello?"

"Yes, Darrel Curtis. I'm just calling to inform you that Mr. Richards quit last night, and Ms. Jensen will be taking his place." I almost said, 'That's great!' but I decided it was better not to.

"All right. Thanks for letting me know." I hung up and turned to my brothers who had been trying to figure out what I was talking about. I told them what the social worker had said, and they just nodded. I could tell that they were glad about this, but who knows if this person would be any better than Mr. Richards? I shook my head and went back to cleaning with my brothers.

There was a knock at the door about an hour later. It was our new social worker. I could tell right away that she was nothing like Mr. Richards. She smiled at me. I guess that's a good sign, anyway.

"Darrel Curtis, right?" I nodded.

"Come in."

**POV Change**

I walked into the house and saw two boys sitting on the couch. One looked like a movie star, and the other one didn't look half bad either. Wow, all three of them are good-looking.

"What are their names?" I asked Darrel.

"I'm Sodapop!" Movie-star boy said.

"Ponyboy," the other kid said. For a second, I wondered if those were their real names, but they seemed pretty serious about it. They must have had original parents.

"I like your names. So, how old are you, Darrel?" He looked at me with ice-blue eyes.

"Twenty," he answered. So, we're the same age. I looked around. The house was pretty well clean. Their clothes were nicer then I've seen on most greasers. I looked at Darrel. He was only a little taller then me. He looked really strong. Just then I remembered that I should've already known these boys' names; after all, I had read about them in the paper a while back. I wonder how I could've forgotten their names.

They are working so hard to stay together. Darrel had an outstanding record in school. He worked two jobs; I can hardly stand having just one. But maybe this job won't be so bad since I get to do this. He noticed that I was staring at him and I turned my head, embarrassed.

"So, I was wondering. Why did you run away a couple months ago?" I asked Ponyboy. All of them seemed to tense up. Pony looked nervous, Soda was biting down on his lip, and Darrel's icy look transformed into one of regret. Now I was really curious. "What happened?" Ponyboy looked at me.

"I came home too late one night; me and Darry fought." He looked like he was going to say more, but he stopped himself. Darry? Oh, that must be Darrel's nickname. I could tell there was more to the story than that. I pressed my lips together.

"Hold on, boys. I need to talk to your brother for a minute," I said, pulling Darry into the kitchen.

"What happened?" I asked him. He sighed. I thought I saw tears in his eyes, but I was probably just imagining that.

"I…" he paused for a moment. "He came home two hours late. I had been so worried about him, and I yelled at him. We fought, and I… I hit him. I didn't mean to." His eyes begged me to understand. He looked really worried. Did he think I would take his brothers away just for that? Maybe Mr. Richards would; of course, he was a big jerk that pretty much hated the world. I wasn't like that; not by a long shot. I wouldn't break apart a family just because of one accidental slap to the face. It's not like its abuse or anything. Besides, who would give up their dreams to take care of their brothers, just to slap them around? That makes absolutely no sense whatsoever.

"It's all right. I believe you." He looked relieved. I smiled at him and we walked back into the other room. His brothers stopped looking nervous when they saw that we were smiling. Everything seemed like it was all going fine and dandy, so I figured it was time to go. I said goodbye to them and took one last look at Darry before I left.

**POV Change**

As soon as Ms. Jensen closed the door, my brothers looked over at me and cracked a grin.

"What?" I asked.

"I think she likes you, Dar," Sodapop told me, nudging my arm. I shook my head. A social worker couldn't love me… could she?

**A/N: …So? Did you like that? Review please!**


	2. The gang visits

I was getting bored. I sat in front of the TV trying to see if anything interesting was on. I don't like reading books or watching movies or anything like that, and TV was no exception. I sighed and turned it off. I was about to ask my brothers if they wanted to round up the gang and play some football when Two-Bit poked his head in.

"Hey, Superman. Fancy meeting you here!" He laughed loudly and walked in, slamming the door looking around. "Where's Soft Drink and Horseman?' I rolled my eyes. I was about to tell him what my brothers were doing when they both came running in.

"Hey, Two-Bit!"

"So, how'd the state visit go? Was everything perfect enough?" He said, half-jokingly.

"Actually, Mr. Richards quit. Ms. Jensen is checking up on us now," I said.

Then Soda piped up with: "More like she's checking Darry out!" Two-Bit looked at me and grinned.

"Whoa, Superman has a girlfriend!" I shook my head.

"We just met…"

"Love at first sight!" Two-Bit interrupted. I elbowed him in the ribs.

"She's a social worker."

"Come on, Darry. You met a social worker that actually has a heart. You should take advantage of it. Is she good-lookin'?" I didn't answer. She is pretty, though. "C'mon, man. You could use a girlfriend." Maybe he's right, but I'm almost afraid to have a girlfriend again. Last time I did, it didn't go over well.

**Flashback**

"_Okay, see you at seven, Darry," Rebecca said, kissing my cheek. I was going to meet her at her house later. What she didn't know, was that I was planning on proposing to her. I couldn't wait to get married any longer. It was time, I knew it. Mom and Dad knew about it, and they were happy for me. Dad was smiling and Mom was wiping her eyes._

"_Oh, my little boy is a man, now!" She was hugging me. I smiled and rolled my eyes. "Tell me all about what happened when you get back, okay?" I nodded as she let go of me. _

"_Good luck, Darry," Dad said, putting a hand on my shoulder. Then Soda came running in._

"_Bye, Darry. Have a good 'date!'" He said, wiggling his eyebrows. I shook my head and laughed. Pony walked in from his bedroom._

"_See ya later, Dar." He waved at me. I waved back, walked out the door, and headed to Rebecca's house. _

_I knocked on the door, but there was no answer. I opened the door and saw her sitting on the couch with some other guy._

"_Darry!" She exclaimed. She'd forgotten I was coming?_

_I raised an eyebrow. Confusion and anger in my voice, I asked, "Who is he?"_

"_Who are you?" The guy asked me. Rebecca looked uncomfortable._

"_What's going on?" I said, even though I had a bad feeling I knew what it was. She walked up to me and tried to tell me what happened, but I didn't even let her finish._

"_I thought you loved me," I said, hurt._

"_I'm sorry…"_

"_You sure are," I snapped, giving her no time to explain any more. With that, I turned and walked out, going back to my house. How could she cheat on me? How? I really loved her, and she just completely ignored my feelings. I thought we were in love! We were supposed to get married! How could this happen? We've been dating for months! _

_I walked in the door and saw Mom. She was smiling, waiting to see how it went. Of course, she didn't expect that it would be a complete disaster. Her smile disappeared._

"_What's wrong? She didn't turn you down, did she?" _

"_She did more than that," I said miserably as a tear rolled down my cheek._

"_Oh, Darry..." She hugged me and my brothers and Dad came in. They saw how miserable I looked and were immediately confused._

"_What happened?" Dad asked, looking at me with concern. I shook my head. I didn't want to talk about it. I didn't want to cry in front of my brothers. I walked to my room and sat on the bed, pulling out the ring I was going to give to Rebecca. I felt my heart shatter, and I pulled my knees to my chest as I cried._

**End of Flashback**

I guess Soda knew what I was thinking, and he said, "Give it a try, Dar. Not all of them are like that, I'm sure." I sighed. How could he be so sure? Sandy did it to him, too. Sylvia did it to Dallas. It seems they're all like that to me. I only hope it doesn't happen to Ponyboy. But Evie hasn't done it to Steve. Yet.

On the other hand, maybe Soda's right. I mean, she's a social worker, and she actually likes me. Who knows, maybe she's different.

Then again, I don't want a repeat of what happened last time.

"No, Sodapop. I'm not risking it. She's just our social worker and that's all she'll ever be." Soda shrugged and whispered something to Pony. I was curious as to what he said, but I didn't question my brothers. Just then, Dally burst in, flopping down on the couch and swearing.

"What's goin' on, Dal?" Ponyboy asked. Dally scowled.

"I'm just so bored. There just ain't nothin' to do today, man."

'_Join the club,_' I thought. Well, there's five of us here.

"Hey, does anybody know where Johnny and Steve are? I was thinkin' that we could play some football," I said.

"I think Johnny was down at the bowling alley, but who knows where Steve is," Two-Bit answered. All of a sudden, Steve stomped in, slamming the door hard. He was really mad. That door is going to fall off its hinges one of these days from being slammed so much. Everything was happening so suddenly today. '_A flying ice cream truck is gonna fall on one of us next,_' I thought.

"What happened, Steve?" Soda asked.

"My old man kicked me out again," he growled. Soda patted his back.

"Well, we're all bored and Superman here thought that we should play some football. What do you think?"

Steve nodded and I said, "All right, who's gonna get Johnny?" Dally jumped up off the couch.

"I'll get him." He slammed the door on the way out. I sighed.

"Can you guys at least _try_ to quit slamming that door?" Two-Bit laughed.

"That's a good one, Muscles. I can't believe I haven't come up with that one yet! I never knew you to be the joking type anymore. 'You must slam the door' is one of the most important rules of this house." I raised an eyebrow.

"Oh, really?"

"Of course. You don't know about it? Here, see for yourself." He pulled a folded piece of paper out of his pocket and handed it to me. He can't be serious… but he was. I unfolded it, and at the top, it said: Rules of the Curtis House. All I could think was, _'Wow, Two-Bit. Really?'_ I rolled my eyes and started to read it.

**Rules of the Curtis House**

1. Thou shalt not forget to slam the door.

2. Come in anytime.

3. Thou shalt not tease Darry about not going to college.

4. The food Sodapop makes shall be multicolored.

5. It shalt always we noisy and loud with the radio turned up all the way.

6. Thou shalt eat chocolate cake at least once a day.

7. Thou shalt not mess with Dally when he is here.

8. He who wakes up first must make breakfast.

9. Ponyboy shalt not smoke more than one pack of cigarettes a day.

10. Thou shalt laugh at all of Two-Bit's jokes.

I looked up from the paper at Two-Bit. "Why did you use old English?" He shrugged.

"It's fun!"

"Hey, show them those 'Darry imitations' you started working on!" Steve exclaimed. Darry imitations? Oh, you've got to be kidding me. Two-Bit cleared his throat. Here we go.

"Thou shalt not forget to do thy homework!" He said, pointing at Ponyboy. I shook my head.

"What are you doing? I don't say it like that." Pony pointed at me.

"So you admit that you say it!"

"Yeah, but not like that! What do you think this is, the Middle Ages?" Two-Bit curled his lip.

"All right, fine." He was about to try again when Dally and Johnny came in.

"Hey, you guys comin'?" Dally asked. I grabbed a football and we went outside.


	3. Sodapop Sets Up a Date

**Ms. Jensen POV**

I was sitting on my bed reading a book when the phone rang. Who could that be? I picked it up, and I almost couldn't believe who it was. It was Darry's brother Sodapop. Why would he be calling me?

"Can I help you?" I asked.

"Yeah, I just wanted to tell you that Darry wants to go out with you." My jaw dropped. Darry actually wants to go out with me? No, that's too good to be true.

"Sodapop, I really don't appreciate prank calls."

"No, I'm serious. Really." Right. I didn't buy that. I'm their social worker. Darry wouldn't want to go out with me.

"Then why doesn't he ask me himself?" I asked, waiting for his confession.

"Well, believe it or not, he's not good with asking girls out. He wanted me to ask you for him." That took me off guard. I still could hardly believe what he was saying. He seemed okay talking to me the other day. It was more likely that Soda was just teasing me. He could probably tell that I liked Darry. I guess I made it too obvious.

"Come on, Sodapop. Cut it out. I know you're teasing me."

"No, really. Come on, I'm not teasing you. Or do you just want me to tell Darry that you don't want to go out with him?" He's still keeping it up. Would he really go this far just to tease me?

"You're really serious?"

"Yeah." Huh, maybe he was telling the truth. Wow, the guy I like actually wants to go on a date with me, and we only just met.

"Okay, when do I meet up with him for the date?" I half expected him to say 'gotcha!' and hang up, but he didn't.

"Tomorrow at 6:00." So he's really not lying.

"Okay, tell him I'll be there." I hung up and sat back down on my bed, sighing happily. I was going on a date with the man of my dreams.

**Sodapop POV**

I hung up the phone and turned to Ponyboy.

"It worked!" I'm so glad she actually fell for it. It sounded real fake, at least to me.

"This is probably a bad idea. Darry's gonna be so mad at you. How do you know this'll work?"

"Nah, he won't get mad at me. Of course it's gonna work. Sure, he doesn't want a girlfriend, but I don't think he would turn her down, especially now that she thinks he really wants to go out with her. Trust me, Pony."

"What are you guys talking about in there?" Darry yelled from the other room.

"Nothing," I yelled back, winking at Pony.

"You're crazy Soda, out of your mind," Pony said.

"It seems to run in this family," I said, laughing. "You know somethin' Ponyboy? Maybe you're more like Darry than you think!" He rolled his eyes and left the room.

There was a knock on the door at around 6:00 the next day. I looked over at Darry and he looked surprised. We all knew that no one knocks on the door unless they're not in the gang. I already knew that it was Ms. Jensen. Ha, Darry doesn't know about his own date. He opened the door.

"Um, what is it? What are you here for?" Darry asked. She giggled.

"Oh, Darry, you're so funny. So, where do you wanna go for our date?" I didn't need to see Darry's face to know his expression. He turned around and glared at me. Then he mouthed the words, _'I am going to kill you.'_

'_Sorry, Dar. You need a girlfriend,'_ I mouthed back. He scowled and looked back at his 'date.'

"All right, come in for a few minutes."

"Okay." Darry closed the door and they sat down.

"I'll just leave you two alone, then," I said, winking at Darry. I thought Darry wouldn't get real mad at me for this, be he was looking at me with such anger in his eyes, and if I had been anyone else, I would've beat it out of there. He can look really intimidating if he wants to. But I wasn't scared of him or anything. What could he do anyway? Well, he's probably going to yell at me after the date. Or maybe the date would turn out good, but I'm not going to hold my breath. Darry can be real stubborn. I grinned at him and left the room.

**A/N: Sorry this took so long. I had some horrible writer's block. And sorry this chapter is so short. The next one will be longer, and I promise I won't take as long with it. Next chapter is the date! Review?**


	4. The Date and Darry's Not Happy

**Darry POV**

I can't believe this is happening. Sodapop actually set me up to date our social worker. But now she's here, and she thinks I really want to go out with her. I don't, even though she is good-looking, and she seems really nice. I don't want to risk it, no matter how nice she is to me. I mean, Rebecca had been nice to me, and I thought we really had been in love, and I still got hurt. Plus, no offence to Ms. Jensen or anything, but the thought of dating your own social worker seemed kinda awkward to me. This probably won't go anywhere, anyway. At least, I hope not.

"Hey, Darry, where do you want to go for the date?" she asked again.

We ended up going to a pretty decent restaurant and we sat across from each other. I ordered a coffee and she ordered a Pepsi. We didn't really talk much until after we ordered our food.

"Darry?"

"Yeah?"

"Are you always this quiet?"

"No. Sorry." I might not be near as talkative as Two-Bit, but I'm never usually this quiet. Ponyboy is, but not me. I know this is supposed to be a date, but I don't want to risk getting attached to her. She shook her head and laughed a little.

"So, how have you been? Do your brothers give you much trouble?" She asked, sipping on her Pepsi.

"I'm doing okay. And my brothers try their best to stay out of trouble. They're pretty good kids, anyway," I answered. Pony is a real quiet kid most of the time; he isn't the type to get into trouble. And he knows I would skin him if he did. Soda got hauled in once, and I told him that better not happen again. He's no troublemaker, anyway.

"So, you guys get along okay?"

"Well, Pony and I used to fight more, but we're okay now." I smiled to myself. I'm so glad we get along better now. I hated to yell at the kid, but he just doesn't use his head half the time. We had been a lot closer before Mom and Dad died, but at least it's better now. Then I realized that Ms. Jensen was staring at me while drinking her pop. It was already half empty. "Ms. Jensen?" I waved my hand in front of her face. She blinked.

"Oh, sorry, Darry. You can call me Holly if you want." Huh. Holly and Darry. That sounded pretty good. Whoa, hang on a minute! What am I thinking? I am not going to fall for her. One state visit and one fixed date can't be enough to fall in love. I'm not in love, and I'm never going to be, either.

She was looking at me weird. I wonder why? Oh, it might be because I was making facial expressions while I'm thinking. I don't normally do that. I only did when I was with Rebecca for some reason. She used to tease me about it. A wave of sadness hit me. I still miss her, even after what she did to me. I loved her. It has almost been a year now, but it still hurts sometimes. Holly was looking at me with concern.

"Are you all right? What's wrong?" I shook my head.

"Nothing. I'm okay."

**Holly POV**

I didn't believe him. He didn't look okay. He looked… sad. He kind of slumped down in his chair and the ice was gone from his eyes. When I got his attention, his icy look returned and he straightened up a little. He said he's okay, but there had to be something bothering him. I didn't question him, though.

Our food came, and he seemed distracted. I guess he must be thinking a lot. What in the world could be bothering him?

"Darry, are you sure you're okay?" I asked. He took a drink of his coffee.

"Yeah." I still didn't believe him, but I know I'm not going to get anything out of him. Huh. Men. Why is it so hard for them to talk about how they feel? If something is bothering me, I don't keep quiet about it. When I was younger, my sister would yell at me and tell me to shut up when I was mad about something; I would get real fired up. And when I was sad, I made sure everyone knew how upset I was. I never kept quiet about anything. Maybe I'm just an emotional person.

I looked at Darry. I needed to cheer him up. I started telling him jokes and funny stories, and soon I got him talking and laughing. He told me about one of his friends: Two-Bit Mathews. He sounded like a really funny person. When we finally finished eating, I insisted that I would pay the bill myself. He argued a little about it, but I told him that he needed as much money as he can get. Then he thanked me and drove me home. That was a nice date. I hope we can get together again.

**Sodapop POV**

I was waiting on the couch for Darry to come back. I was nearly asleep when he came in.

"Hey, Dar! How did it go? Do ya like her?"

"She's nice. But I don't want a girlfriend. Why did you have to do that? How am I supposed to get out of this? She thinks I want to date her now!"

"Sorry, Darry. I just thought you would be happier if you had a girlfriend. I could tell that she liked you, so I jumped at the chance. Why don't you want to date her? You said that she's nice," I explained.

"First of all, I don't need a girlfriend to be happy. And I don't want to date her because I'm not risking a repeat of what happened last time."

"Darry, not everyone is like that." He shook his head.

"Sodapop, do you know how much I loved Rebecca? Do you know I wanted to marry her? I thought she really loved me. I trusted her, and you know what happened. Do you know how much that hurt?" His voice cracked in pain. I did understand. Pretty much the same thing happened to me. But I'm not acting as upset as he did.

"I know what you mean, Dar." I remember how he was after that happened to him. He was depressed. He just laid down on the couch for a long time and stared at the TV, and he hardly ate much. That was really unusual, because he usually eats more. He had this far off look in his eyes, and it was hard to get his attention sometimes. We all felt real bad for him. I wanted to teach Rebecca a lesson for hurting my brother like that, but I don't hit girls, and it wouldn't make anyone feel any better.

I really don't understand why anyone would hurt someone like that, especially when they trust you. And I was so sure that she loved him, too. Maybe she just met someone "better" and was trying to date both of them without breaking Darry's heart, or maybe she met this other guy and was planning to break up with Darry. Well, if she hadn't wanted to hurt him, she definitely failed. He's still sensitive about it. Obviously.

I wish Darry would get over it and give Ms. Jensen more of a chance. I would hate to see Darry hurt again, but she doesn't seem like the type that would do that. From what I can tell, anyway. "Come on, Dar. Give Ms. Jensen a chance. I don't think she would cheat on you. She obviously really likes you." He sighed in frustration.

"I thought Rebecca loved me, too. How do I really know I can trust Holly? What about Sylvia and Sandy? Look what they did!"

"Sylvia was just a cheaty broad. Sandy… well, you know. Steve and Evie are doing okay." Darry rolled his eyes.

"Yeah, one out of three is _so _good," he said sarcastically. We kept arguing about it for a little while when Ponyboy came in.

"What's going on, guys? Was the date okay?"

"It was all right. But I'm trying to tell your brother that I don't either need or want a girlfriend."

"Aw, come on, Darry. Just give her a chance!" Darry glared at him.

"No! Why can't you guys just accept that?" I spoke up.

"Well, you're stuck with her unless you dump her." He was really mad now.

"Why did you have to do this? I was happy enough! This is all your fault! Now you got me stuck in this mess, and it's not helping anything!" His eyes were blazing.

"Darry…" Pony started. Darry turned on him.

"You're not helping anything, either! You guys ruined everything!" He was yelling now. Pony and I were taken aback.

"Fine!" Pony yelled back. "Come on, Soda." We turned around to go to bed. Darry sighed softly.

"Guys, I…" he broke off. We ignored him and went to bed.

**Darry POV**

_Great, I've successfully made my brothers mad at me._ I sighed and ran my hands through my hair. I walked over to the room they shared and stood by the door.

"Soda, I told you Darry was gonna be angry," Pony said.

"Yeah, but I didn't think he'd be that upset." I stuffed my hands in my pockets. I didn't mean to be that harsh; I was just getting frustrated.

"Why can't he just relax for once?"

"I don't know. I guess he just worries too much." Why did they blame me? They got me into this mess. Well, Pony didn't, really. And I don't worry too much. Okay, maybe I am being a little paranoid, but how do I know I can trust Holly? Plus, she's nice and pretty, but is she really for me?

I realized that my brothers stopped talking. I checked my watch. Man, it's getting late! I walked to my room and pulled off my shirt and jeans. I laid down in my bed and pulled the covers over me. I closed my eyes and imagined Rebecca lying next to me. Maybe Soda and Pony are right. I might actually be happier with a girlfriend. After all, I have to do so much work, and Pony would rather hang out with Sodapop or Johnny or Two-Bit than with me. Same with Soda. I would never admit it to anyone, but I get a little lonely sometimes. Pony talks to me a little more than he used to. I know that he talks to Soda a lot more, though.

Pony hardly talked to me at all before. When he did, it would be to ask me if he could go somewhere, or answer something I asked him. I mean, I knew he was quiet, but he always talked to Sodapop more. I wondered if he even loved me sometimes.

I read his theme he wrote for school a while back, and I was a little shocked by what he used to think of me. It made me feel horrible. It kinda broke my heart. He thought I didn't want him here. All that time, I thought he hated me, when it was only because he thought I hated him. Sodapop was right. I did yell at him too much. I'm real glad we all get along better now. Although, I do still feel alone sometimes. Maybe I do need a girlfriend. Maybe I can get together with Holly again sometime.

**A/N: Whaddaya think? Review!**


	5. Good Morning and The Broken Window

I woke up first the next morning. I was about to start making breakfast when Sodapop came running in.

"Morning, Dar! Are we having chocolate cake?" I couldn't believe how awake he was already. We all went to bed later than usual last night, and Soda wasn't normally a morning person.

"Again, Sodapop?"

"Please?" I sighed.

"All right. Where's Pone? He still in bed?" Before he could answer, Pony came in, rubbing his eyes. I rubbed the back of my neck. Everything was so sudden anymore. I found some chocolate cake in the icebox and we sat down at the table to eat. I looked at my brothers.

"Guys… I'm sorry about last night." I really was. Even though I had been really frustrated with the situation, my brothers had only been trying to help me.

"It's okay, Dar. Don't worry about it," Sodapop said. Ponyboy wasn't looking at me.

"Pony… I'm sorry I snapped at you." He grinned a little.

"I know you are." I raised an eyebrow.

"Oh, so you're getting smart with me now, are you?" I said playfully. I was just teasing him since I was happy that he wasn't upset with me.

"So what if I am?" he challenged.

"Okay, you're asking for it now!" I got up and picked him up, slinging him over my shoulder like a sack of potatoes.

"Darry! Put me down!" he shouted, pounding on my back.

"Nope!" Sodapop just sat in his chair laughing.

"Come on, Dar. Cut it out!" Pony said.

"All right, if you insist." I flipped him over and dropped him on the floor, but not hard enough to hurt him. Pony stuck his tongue out at me. I just laughed and ruffled his hair. Then we sat back own to finish our chocolate cake. I glanced at my watch.

"Come on, Sodapop. If we don't get going, we'll be late!" Soda was running around the house looking for something.

"I can't find my DX cap!" I shook my head. Really, Soda?

"Sodapop, it's on your head." He reached up and pulled off his hat, then put it back on.

"Well, whaddaya know? You're right, Dar!" I rolled my eyes. What a goofball.

"Let's go." I suddenly realized that he wasn't wearing shoes. "Soda, shoes." He frowned.

"Do I have to?"

"Yeah." I smiled as he reluctantly put his shoes on. For some reason, he's never liked shoes. I remember when he was about six years old…

**Flashback**

"_Sodapop, you have to wear shoes to school," Mom said._

"_How come?" Soda whined._

"_Because."_

"_Because why?" When Soda wanted an answer, he never settled for 'because' or 'because I told you so.' He wanted a legitimate explanation. Mom sighed._

"_Just put your shoes on." _

_Soda curled his lip and said defiantly, "No!" Mom raised an eyebrow, and Soda cowered at her look. I started laughing and Mom looked over at me._

"_Darrel!" she scolded. Then Dad walked in, apparently thinking that Mom called him. _

"_What?" he asked. Mom sighed._

"_Not you." It was confusing sometimes since Dad and I had the same name. That's part of the reason why I'm normally called 'Darry' instead._

"_She's talking to me, Dad," I said._

"_Oh. What's going on?"_

"_Mom's trying to get Soda to put his shoes on." Dad laughed._

"_Again? Hey, Pepsi-Cola, you know you could get in trouble at school if you don't wear your shoes." Soda's eyes went wide._

"_Really?' He had a deathly fear of being yelled at, especially by teachers. Dad nodded and Sodapop begrudgingly put his shoes on. Soda and I got our stuff for school and we went outside to wait for the bus. Ponyboy was only in preschool and Mom was going to drop him off later._

**End of Flashback**

It was Saturday, so I let Ponyboy stay home by himself since he didn't have school. I got in the truck with Soda and I dropped him off at the DX and I headed to the first of my two jobs.

**3****rd**** Person POV**

It was around the time that Darry and Soda would be home from work and Ponyboy was trying to think of what to do. He grabbed a ball and started throwing it against the wall and completely zoned out. He was snapped out of it when he heard glass break. He had broken the window! His eyes went wide.

"Crap, Darry's gonna kill me!" he said. He looked outside and saw one of the neighbors. More specifically, the one who got into everyone's business, especially the Curtis's. What's worse is that he always suspects Darry for anything that goes wrong there. He thought that Darry was just an irresponsible hood that shouldn't be allowed to have custody of Pony and Soda. He even ignored the article in the newspaper about them a few months ago. He refused to believe any of it for some reason. He most likely just simply hated them. Why? Who knows.

Without thinking, Pony accidentally stepped on the broken glass when he walked toward the window.

"Ow!" Pony jumped up and fell backwards onto the shards of glass. Luckily, he didn't get any serious injuries. Just then, Darry and Soda pulled in the driveway.

**Darry POV**

When I got out of the truck, I saw that one of the windows on the house was broken. I also saw Mr. Johnson. Oh, great. What's he gonna say I "failed" at this time? And how did the window get broken? Soda followed me into the house, and there were little pieces of glass on the floor along with an injured Ponyboy.

"Pony, what happened?" I asked. He didn't look up at me.

"I, uh… I was throwing a ball against the wall, I zoned out, and I sorta accidentally broke the window." My temper started rising.

"How'd you get hurt?"

"I wasn't paying attention and I stepped on the glass and fell." I was furious now. Pony just never thinks!

"Dang it, Pony! Why can't you just use your head? Now we have to pay for a new window just because you were being careless!"

"I'm sorry."

"Yeah, well, that ain't gonna fix the window!" Soda glared at me.

"Lay off him, Dar. It was an accident." I sighed roughly.

"I'll get the first aid kit."

When I came back with it, I was about to start helping Pony, but then he told me that he wants _Soda _to do it. He said that in kind of a nasty tone, and I shot him a warning glare. He was mad at me and he turned everything around in his head and acts like it's my fault. Sure, I yelled at him, but it was for a good reason. We may get along better now, but that doesn't keep him from getting mad at me. We still have our misunderstandings. And it still seems like he prefers Soda over me for almost everything.

Sodapop was working on fixing Pony up when there was a knock on the door. I opened it and found Holly staring back at me.

**A/N: Some of you might be confused because of the fact that this is after the book but Dally and Johnny are still alive. The thing is that I wanted them in this story, and I wanted it to be after the book. So just work with me, here! :P Anyway, I hope you're enjoying my story! Review please! **


	6. Holly Visits, Anger, and Hurt

**Holly POV**

"Holly? What is it?" Darry asked.

"I could ask you the same question. We got a report that something was going on here involving Ponyboy," I said, wondering what possibly could have happened.

"Oh, he was here by himself and accidentally broke a window and got a little scratched up. He'll be okay." I nodded.

"Can I come in for a minute?" Darry smiled.

"Sure, no problem." I followed him into the house and sat on the couch. I looked at Ponyboy.

"So… you're fourteen, right?" I asked him. He nodded. "Okay. Darry, do you normally let him stay home alone when Sodapop and you are at work?"

"Yeah…" Darry said slowly. There was no problem with Ponyboy staying home alone for a while; he was old enough.

"You lock the door, right?" I don't know why I even bothered to ask this. Why wouldn't they lock the door when Pony's home alone? That's just common sense. I can be kind of an airhead sometimes.

"No. It's always unlocked in case one of the gang comes by, and we don't have anything worth stealing, anyway," Sodapop said. I sure didn't expect that answer.

"You may not have anything worth stealing, but if you never have your door locked, one of you could be kidnapped or something!" Darry shook his head.

"No. I would die before I lost one of my brothers," he said sincerely, looking at me with those ice-blue eyes of his. He was dead-serious, and I wasn't really surprised by that. He had already lost so much, and he must be determined to keep his brothers safe from harm as much as possible. I almost said, 'that's really sweet!' but I decided it would be better not to. He would never hear the end of his brothers' teasing if I said that.

"I understand that. But I'm warning you just in case. I know Darry does a wonderful job with you guys." I winked at Darry, and he smiled.

"Thank you. But how did you find out about what happened?"

"Well, someone called and told us about it."

"Who was it?"

"His name was Bill Johnson," I told him, wondering why he wanted to know that. All three brothers looked annoyed. "What is it?"

"He hates us. We're pretty sure his main goal in life is to get us split up," Sodapop said.

"Oh, that's tough. Don't worry too much though. Everyone makes mistakes, and I know Darry's trying hard to keep you guys here." I smiled and looked at Darry. He was so handsome, even with that cold look that his eyes possessed. My eyes traveled to his lips. I bet he's a good kisser…

I was ripped out of my thoughts when Soda said, "Darry hot enough for ya?" I blushed furiously and Darry thumped Soda on the head. Ponyboy just laughed.

"Sorry about that," Darry apologized. I nodded. I felt sort of embarrassed. I really need to quit staring at Darry so much.

"I guess I'll see you guys another time," I said quickly, wanting to get out of there.

"Holly, wait!" Darry called before I could leave. "Do you want to go out again sometime?" I nearly fainted. Darry just asked me to go out with him! It occurred to me then that Soda had lied to me before. Darry was perfectly capable of asking me out. But wait… I guess that means Soda set us up. That was why Darry was so confused at first. Well, it doesn't matter. He wants to go out now.

"Sure, Darry. Call me and we'll talk about it."

"All right, then. See ya." I waved at him and left.

**Darry POV**

I smiled and went back inside. Soda and Pony were grinning at me.

"So… what was all that you said about _not_ wanting a girlfriend?" Sodapop said, cocking an eyebrow. I rolled my eyes and ruffled his hair.

"Yeah, yeah."

"I knew you would thank me one day." I laughed.

"I haven't thanked you just yet, little buddy. And you only just set me up with her yesterday."

"Whatever you say, Darry." I heard the door open and turned around to see Two-Bit.

"Hey, which one of those danged Socs broke your window, Superman?"

"It wasn't a Soc, Two-Bit. It was a certain fourteen year old greaser." I shot a look at Ponyboy. He glared at me.

"I said I didn't mean to! It was an accident!"

"Yeah, but you need to learn to use your head and pay attention! We wouldn't be in this mess if you would just get your head out of the clouds!" Now Soda looked a little mad.

"Lay off, Darry."

"What do you want me to do, Soda? Say, 'oh, it's okay. Break as many windows as you want. Who cares if it costs a lot of money?' We can't afford for Pony to be making all these stupid mistakes. He needs to pay attention before he accidentally does something worse! What if he accidentally does something to get himself into serious trouble and I lose you guys? Saying, 'sorry, I didn't mean to' isn't gonna do anything!" I looked over at Pony. "I'm tired of all your carelessness! Why is it so hard for you to just think for once?" Soda and Two-Bit were shocked. Pony looked really upset and frustrated.

"Well, I'm sorry I'm not perfect! I'm not you, Darry! And I never will be! Why can't you leave me alone for once? I hate you! Maybe it would be a good thing if you lost us! Then I'd never have to see you again!" I felt like he'd just stabbed me in the heart, although I'd started it. He ran into his room and slammed the door. I wanted to kick myself. My brothers had just forgiven me this morning from what happened last night, and I made them mad at me all over again. I guess Pony's not the only one who sometimes says or does things he doesn't mean. Soda looked like he wanted to slap me. I kind of wanted him to. I deserved it. Me and Pony aren't even supposed to fight anymore.

Shame and regret punched me in the gut. What have I done? Soda walked off and went to check on Ponyboy. I sank down into the armchair. Two-Bit looked at me. I half expected him to give me a dirty look and leave. Surprisingly, he didn't look like he wanted to kill me.

"Why did you say all that?" He asked. He didn't sound mad, just confused and curious.

"Man, I don't know," I said miserably. I really didn't mean to say all that, it all sort of came out. I let my anger and frustration get the best of me _again_. What is wrong with me?

"Well, uh, I guess I'll come by another time, 'kay buddy?"

"Okay." I didn't look up at him. I didn't want him to see my face. He'd never called me 'buddy' before. He probably thought I needed someone on my side. I didn't deserve it, but I was thankful that he didn't hate me. He's a good buddy. He awkwardly patted me on the back and left without slamming the door for the first time. I got up and walked to my room and sat on the bed. I felt my heart break and a few tears slipped down my cheeks. I felt like some kind of monster. I sat there for a while until Soda came in and told me that dinner was ready. We didn't talk hardly at all. I felt awful.

"Ponyboy…" He didn't look up at me. "Pony… I'm real sorry." Neither of my brothers even acknowledged that I had said anything.

We finished eating, and I was about to help Pony wash the dishes since Sodapop had made dinner, but Soda stopped me.

"I'll do it, Darry." That hurt. They really didn't want to be around me. I looked down.

"All right." I went back to my room and sat down. How am I ever going to get my brothers to forgive me? Tears started coming down my face, but I didn't try to stop them. I just cried.

**A/N: Sorry it took so long to update. Review, please! Do it for Darry! His heart is broken!**


	7. Apologies and Darry's Scar

**Ponyboy POV**

We finished washing the dishes and I was going to find something to read, but Soda stopped me.

"Pony, I was thinkin'. Ya think we should just forgive Darry? He sounded awful sorry to me, and I don't think staying mad at him is gonna help anything. Heck, I think that it hurt his feelings when I said I would do the dishes instead. What do you think?"

I almost objected, but Soda was right. Staying mad at Darry really won't help anything. Besides, I don't really hate him or anything; I just get frustrated with him sometimes. Dad never yelled at me so much. Darry did have a point, though. What did I expect him to do? Praise me for breaking a window? I caused this mess, not him. And he was right. I need to start using my head more. I guess I really shouldn't have gotten so mad at Darry. I feel like a jerk. Darry didn't deserve the way Soda and I had treated him. We had hurt him. I hurt him. It was time to apologize.

I walked with Soda to Darry's room. I told him I would go first. I opened the door and walked in. "Hey, Dar…" the words died in my throat. Darry was sitting there on the bed, crying softly into his hands. That absolutely destroyed me. We made him cry? It takes a lot to make Darry cry. We'd really hurt him. Tears welled up in my eyes. This was all my fault!

I looked at Soda and he looked as upset as I probably did. I slowly walked over to Darry and sat down quietly beside him. Soda sat on the other side. I gently put a hand on Darry's shoulder. He looked at me and I accidentally locked eyes with him. He was broken. I'd never seen him like this before. I tore my eyes away. I didn't want to start crying too. That would just make him feel worse, and that was the last thing I wanted. Darry sniffed.

"I'm really sorry, guys. Ponyboy, I shouldn't have yelled at you like that. I just got mad because the window… I mean… I know it was an accident..." I stopped him before he could go any further.

"Darry, no. Don't be sorry. You didn't do anything wrong. It was me. I broke the window, and you were right. I need to use my head more. I was being stupid, Darry. I should be the one apologizing, not you. And I didn't mean that stuff I yelled. I love you, and I would miss you if you lost us. I'm sorry we made you cry." I felt a little corny saying all that stuff, but Darry needed it. Soda spoke up.

"I'm sorry too, Darry. I love you, big brother." Darry smiled.

"I love you guys, too."

We all hugged, and then Sodapop said, "No more fights?" Darry and I nodded.

"No more fights," we said at the same time, and we all laughed. I suddenly noticed that there was a scar on Darry's cheek.

"Hey, Darry, what happened?" He looked at me funny.

"What do you mean?"

"How'd you get that scar?" His smile faded and he looked down.

"There was a nasty guy at work." Soda and I listened as he told the story.

**XXX**

_Darry was taking a short break when a Soc came up and said, "Hey greaser. Why don't you get off your butt and get to work?" Darry narrowed his eyes._

"_Mind your own business, Soc."_

"_I don't have to listen to a piece of white trash like you. Your good for nothin' little brother and his stupid friend killed Bob Sheldon. He was a good friend of mine. You low-life. Why are you even keeping your brothers? They're nothing but a couple of hoodlums!" Darry was really mad now. He punched the Soc, hard._

"_You'd best shut up that big mouth of yours before I knock your head off!" The Soc got back off the ground and pushed Darry down. The Soc kneeled over him, pulled out a blade and held it to his throat._

"_I should just kill you now, that's one less stupid greaser to worry about." Darry didn't move. This Soc could kill him. Luckily, their boss came by._

"_Break it up!" The Soc didn't move._

"_I said get off Curtis, Williams!" The Soc knew he was fired anyway, so he cut Darry's cheek and got up. Darry cried out in pain and he sat up, rubbing his throat. _

"_Williams, you're fired! Now get out!" The Soc scowled and stormed away, leaving the worksite. "You okay, Curtis?" Darry didn't answer. He was lost in thought. That Soc could've killed him! What would his brothers do then? And the gang? He was kind of the unofficial leader. "Curtis?" Darry shook his head._

"_Yeah, I'm okay."_

"_You'd better go get cleaned up, then." Darry nodded, still mad about what the Soc had said about his brothers._

**XXX**

I gaped at Darry. He could've died today! Soda and I could've lost him! Why can't those Socs just leave us alone? We left them alone. We didn't walk around looking for one of them to come by so we can jump them. Why do they just feel like they have to do that? Did that guy not care that he would be taking Darry away from us? But then again, most Socs hardly really even have feelings. They just are looking for something to do, but why did that something have to involve nearly killing my brother? Why? I'll probably never know.

Now I felt really bad about how I had treated Darry. He went through all that, just to come home and find out that I did another stupid thing, and then I turn it on him like it's suddenly his fault, and make him feel horrible. Then I realized: I do that to him a lot. He scolds me for doing something wrong, and then I yell at him and tell him to get off my case. And then Soda sticks up for me. Of course, Darry sometimes would yell at me too much, like I thought before: if I was playing football, I should be in studying, and if I was reading, I should be out playing football. It wasn't always like that, though. It's just unfair to Darry when I get mad at him for yelling at me when he had a good reason to be yelling at me, and then Soda tells him to lay off.

What Soda and I did to him today was the worst thing to do. Darry gave up a lot for us, and he's trying hard to keep us together. I know he's doing the best he can. I had realized this a couple months ago, but I hadn't really thought about it until now. He could be in college right now instead of having to roof houses, but he decided to keep us anyway. He knew we were all we had left. And today, we got all mad at him and made him cry, when all he did was scold me for something I did that was going to cause problems. I looked at Darry's eyes. Most of the time they were stone-cold, but now, there was a soft touch to them. I remembered what he said earlier today:

"_I would die before I lost one of my brothers."_

He meant that. If I walked outside right now, and a Soc put a gun to my head, I bet, no, I _know_, that Darry would tell the guy to shoot him instead, no matter how much I might protest. Darry would never forgive himself if one of us was killed. Especially if there was a way he could've prevented it, even if it meant death for him. Darry saw it like this: if he were to die in place of us, it was better than one of us dying, even though it would mean the boy's home for us. He may have told me that you don't stop living because you lose someone, but if he lost me or Soda… well, he might not stop living, but he would be an awful wreck and the guilt would eat him alive, even if it wasn't his fault and there was nothing he could've done. He tends to blame himself like that sometimes, like he had today, even though it was my fault.

I vowed right then that I would do something for him.

There was an uncomfortable silence. Then Soda cleared his throat.

"Hey, Darry, are you gonna call Holly back now?" Darry nodded.

"Yeah." He left the room and I looked over at Soda.

"How much does a window cost?"

**A/N: Yes, I just cut it off there. Oh, and there's that line that says: "if I was playing football, I should be in studying, and if I was reading, I should be out playing football." That line was in the book, so it belongs to S.E. Hinton, not me. I just want to make sure you all know that! And, I hope you liked this chapter as much as I did because I'm really happy with how it turned out. You get a hug from Darry if you review! ;)**


	8. Puffinboy and the Card Rumble

**Holly POV**

I just finished eating dinner when the phone rang. I picked it up.

"Hello?"

"Holly?" I heard Darry's voice ask.

"Hi, Darry! How are you?"

"I'm doing alright. You?" I smiled. _Really good now that you called._

"I'm okay."

"That's great. Hey, where do you want to go for the date?" I thought for a moment. Surprisingly, I hadn't thought about the date at all. I was too busy to think. It didn't help that my sister just got a new boyfriend and when I talked to her earlier, she just went on and on about _Joe_. I hardly got two words in. She doesn't even know I'm going out with Darry.

Then, without thinking, I said, "Do you wanna go for a walk?"

"A walk?" Darry sounded surprised. "Are you sure?"

"Yeah. Um, unless you don't want to…"

"No, it's fine. We can go for a walk."

"Okay. How about tomorrow at 7:00?"

"Yeah, that's fine. See ya."

"Bye, Darry." I hung up and washed the dishes. Then I walked to my room and put on my pajamas and lay down on the bed. I can't wait for the date tomorrow, I thought, yawning. I fell asleep, dreaming of all the great times Darry and I will have together.

**Darry POV**

I woke up the next morning and saw my brothers in the kitchen. Since when did they decide to wake up early? Especially on Sunday? And to top it off, they had already made breakfast and were getting the table ready.

"What are you guys doin' up so early?" Sodapop flashed a smile.

"What does it look like we're doin'?" He laughed a little and then said, "It was Pony's idea." Now I understood. Pony still felt bad about what happened yesterday, and he probably wanted to do something to try to make it up to me. I smiled.

"Thanks, Ponyboy." He ran up and hugged me.

"I love you, Darry." I hugged back.

"Right back at ya, kiddo."

Then Soda said, "What about me? I helped, ya know." I rolled my eyes and ruffled his hair.

"Thanks, little buddy. What did you guys make?"

"Green pancakes!"

"You made those again? Do you think that's really necessary?"

"C'mon, Dar, you know you love it. I don't see you taking my food coloring away. Besides, it's more fun to make it different colors, and it tastes better for some reason." I grinned and shook my head.

"I think it's all in your head."

"Maybe it's because his name is Sodapop. Ya think if his name was Patrick, he would be a little different?" Ponyboy said.

"I don't really think so. You think you would be any different if your name was Michael?" Soda countered.

"Maybe not. I guess that's just us."

"But the question is, would Darry be different if his name was Puffinboy?" I rolled my eyes.

"Puffinboy? Really, Sodapop? Ya think Dad would really name me that?"

"I wouldn't put it past him. Hey, if Mom hadn't named you, you might've been Puffinboy Shaynne Curtis! Then we would've been Soda, Pony, and Puffle!"

"Puffle? I probably would be different."

"Yeah, Dar. I guess you should be thankful that Mom wasn't like Dad sometimes."

"You're tellin' me," I said, finishing up my brothers' green pancakes. When we were done eating, I washed the dishes and took a shower.

I was pulling on my jeans when I heard some laughing and Two-Bit asked, "Where is he?"

"He's in the bathroom," Soda answered. What the heck is going on? I put on my shirt and opened the door.

"Hey, Puffle!" Two-Bit was howling with laughter. I looked at my brothers.

"You told him about that?" Soda grinned.

"Sorry, Dar. We couldn't help it. The whole gang knows." Oh, great. I shoulda known I had this coming. I walked into the living room, and everyone looked up at me and immediately started laughing, even Johnny.

"So, Puffle, how do you like your new nickname?" Steve elbowed me in the side.

"Do you want me to start calling you Butterfly?" Ha, that shut him up.

"Puffle? Wow, Darry, I thought you could never sink that low." Dally said, laughing. I was pretty annoyed by now.

"All right, you've all had your fun, now quit buggin' me about it!" The laughter died down and it was completely silent.

"Relax, Dar, we were just teasin' you a little," Soda said. I then realized that I must look pretty mad. I could take a little teasing from Soda, but I had enough. The whole gang was kind of afraid of me, except maybe Dallas. I looked at Johnny and his eyes were wide. My anger softened. He should know I would never lay a hand on him. I remembered the night I hit Ponyboy. He was afraid as soon as he walked in the door, and he was downright terrified after I hit him. I didn't mean to. Soda looked a little scared of me too. The rest of the avoided me for a while after that, and it hurt. I felt awful that whole time Pony was gone. Two-Bit spoke up.

"Um, so… how's it goin' with that girl, Superman?"

"Well, we have another date tonight."

"Now what did I tell ya? Pay up, Steve!" Steve scowled and handed Two-Bit twenty bucks. "So what are you two doin'?"

"We're just gonna go for a walk." Two-Bit nodded.

"Tuff enough. Hey, who's up to a game of cards?" Soda and Steve nodded. "Anyone else? Okay, then." They left the room.

"So, you got a girl now, huh, Darry? Who is she?" Dally asked.

"Our new social worker."

"Am I hearin' you right, man? You picked up a social worker?"

"Not exactly. It's a long story, Dal."

"Yeah, you shoulda seen her," Ponyboy started, "she looked at Darry like he was Elvis or somethin'. Hey, Darry, me and Johnny are going out for a smoke, okay?" I nodded.

"Okay, but stay on the porch, you hear?" Pony and Johnny went outside, and Dally followed me into the kitchen to check up on the other guys. The three of them were sitting in a circle behind chairs with cards in their hands.

"Surrender, Mathews, or face the wrath of the four of clubs!" Soda shouted.

"Never!" Two-Bit threw a card and it hit Soda square in the face.

"No! Not the five of diamonds! Ahhhh!"

"Hey Mathews, eat this!" Steve yelled, getting ready to throw a card.

"No, not an ace!" Two-Bit screamed, running into the bathroom. Steve got up and pounded on the door.

"Open this door! Come out and fight!"

"Shut it Randle, I have to pee!"

"You can't stay in there forever!" I shook my head and laughed. What did they think they were? Five? Two-Bit came out of the bathroom, zipping up his pants.

"Hey, is Curtis still down?" Soda got up.

"Not anymore! Card minions, attack!" He then started throwing all of his cards at Two-Bit and Steve.

"Hey!" I yelled. They stopped and looked at me.

"Oh, have other Curtis and Winston come to join the game now?" Two-Bit said.

"What are you guys even playing?" Dally asked.

"It's called a Card Rumble. It's a pretty fun game. It's like an actual rumble, except you throw cards at each other instead!"

"Is there a reason why you call each other by your last names?" I asked. Soda shrugged.

"It just seemed like the thing to do." I laughed.

"I should throw all three of you in the loony bin."

"Good, I haven't been in there for a while and it's probably been missing me. And by a while I mean a few hours ago!" Two-Bit grinned crazily. Dally looked at him.

"Two-Bit, you're an idiot."

"Why thank you! That's just one of the many services I provide." I shook my head.

"You guys are all crazy."

Then Soda grinned and said, "I know you are, but what am I?" I ruffled his hair.

"That's a good one, little buddy."

"Hey guys, I think I'm gonna get goin'. Good luck on your date, Superman," Two-Bit said.

"Okay, see ya." The rest of the gang didn't leave until it was about time for the date.

"Well, Dar, good luck!" Sodapop said.

"Thanks buddy. You guys will be all right while I'm gone?" I was just a little worried because of what Holly said before about possible kidnapping. I really can't believe I hadn't thought about that before. I'm even starting to think about locking the door.

"We'll be fine, Darry. Don't worry about it." I smiled, but then I looked at the broken window. Dang, I forgot about that. I still have to get a new window! Oh, well. No use thinking about it now. There was a knock on the door, and I opened it.

"Hi, Darry!" Holly greeted.

"Hi. You know, you don't have to knock on the door. You could just come in." She just shrugged.

"Are you ready to go?"

"Yeah. Bye, guys."

"See ya, Darry," Ponyboy said, waving. I waved back and started my walk with Holly.


	9. Nothing but Bad Luck

**Holly POV**

"So, Darry, how can you stand having two jobs?" I asked. I didn't think I would be able to handle that. The one job I have is enough for me.

"Well, I have to. I don't exactly like it, but I can handle it."

"What is it like, being a guardian?" He thought for a moment.

"It's not easy, of course, and Ponyboy and I may not get along so great at times, but it's all right. I guess the hardest part is that I have to watch my every move. I have to be really careful about what I do. I don't know what I would do if I lost my brothers." Hearing him say that, I can only imagine how upset he was when Ponyboy ran away. Especially since he had been the one to drive away his little brother. I could still see the guilt on his face.

"It wasn't all your fault, you know."

"What?"

"You know what I'm talking about. Ponyboy running away and all. I mean, he was two hours late, and he knew what time he had to be home. And you didn't mean to hit him. Those Socs jumped him and that kid Johnny, and you didn't cause that. Sure, he ran off because you slapped him, but he might've come back if it wasn't for the Socs. Believe me, Darry." He stopped walking and looked at me.

"I thought no one was on my side. The whole gang is somewhat afraid of me, Pony used to think that I hated him, and it was like Soda always stuck up for Pony. When Pony was late that night, Soda didn't support me either. I felt like I was being backed up into a corner. After Ponyboy ran off, I was sure that both of my brothers hated me. I'm just glad I was wrong about that."

"How could you handle that pressure? Did you think they hated you before?" He sighed.

"I honestly don't know how I handled it. And I did sometimes think that they hated me. Not Soda as much, though. I guess I just thought that Soda loved Pony more." I fully understood by then. Darry had felt alone. That must've been pretty rough for him, feeling that Pony hated him and that Soda didn't love him as much, while he loved both his brothers the same. It's good they worked it all out by now, but I still felt bad for him.

I looked him straight in the eyes and kissed him. I felt him kiss back and I knew I was right. Darry is an amazing kisser. Our moment was cut short when my old boyfriend and a few of his friends pulled up in a black mustang and honked the horn. Oh, great.

"Hey, grease. Havin' a little fun with my girlfriend?" Darry looked at me, confused.

"Chris Williams, I told you that we are over already!" He got out of the car.

"Oh, come on. You don't wanna go out with that low-life." Darry's eyes were blazing now.

"Yes, I do. And he's not a low-life, he is my boyfriend. Now go away."

"Liar. You told me just last night on our date that you decided he was nothing to you, and you were gonna break up with him and take me back." Now Darry looked a little hurt.

"Holly… I… I thought…" he stuttered.

"That she loves you?" Chris interrupted. "No. That was nothing but a goodbye kiss. She loves me!"

"He's lying, Darry… Chris, leave us alone!"

"Get in the car, Holly."

"No! Leave!"

"Oh, come on, Holly. I could show you a better time than him." He grabbed my arm, trying to pull me with him.

"No! Let me go!"

"Hey!" Darry yelled. "She said let go!" Chris let go of me and eyed Darry.

"You're the greaser I tried to kill just yesterday. I guess it's time for me to finish the job!" Chris flipped out a blade. I felt my eyes get wide. He tried to kill Darry?

"Don't you dare hurt him!" Chris turned to me, an evil smirk on his face.

"Only if you take me back."

"Leave her alone, Soc. She doesn't want you!" Darry shouted.

"I've had about all I can take from you." He went up to Darry and punched him in the face. Soon, they were rolling around on the ground, punching and kicking each other.

"Stop it!" I screamed. I ran up and tried to pull Chris away, but he shoved me off. I fell and then I looked down and saw that I scraped my arm. Darry was really mad now. They continued to fight some more for a few more minutes, and I didn't bother to try and stop them. I knew there was nothing I could do but watch. I was just glad to see that Darry was winning.

Finally, Darry pinned Chris down.

"Get out," Darry said between clenched teeth. Chris got up and glared at us, then got back in his car and left. Darry turned to me.

"Man, it seems like I have nothing but bad luck all the time. Are you okay?"

"Yeah. Darry, I'm so sorry about that."

"It wasn't your fault."

"Hey… you know he was lying, right? I mean…" Darry smiled.

"Yeah, I know." I looked down, feeling awkward.

"Um, he really tried to kill you yesterday?" I asked, trying to change the subject.

"Yeah. He almost did, too. Luckily for me, the boss came by and got him to leave. But I still got cut on the cheek," he said, pointing to the scar.

"Wait… he tried to kill you _at work_?" He nodded.

"He badmouthed me and my brothers, and then he nearly slit my throat."

"Do your brothers know?"

"They do. Pony noticed the scar and asked me about it last night. He was real shocked. Soda was too." Darry suddenly stopped talking and winced.

"Darry…?" Then I realized that there was a nasty cut on his arm. Chris's blade must have slipped. Or he did it on purpose. Darry sighed.

"I guess I'd better get home and get cleaned up. You do too, huh?" he said, remembering the scrape on my arm. I nodded, and he offered me his hand. "Let's go, then." We held hands all the way back to his house.


	10. Home Again

When Holly and I got back to my house, Soda stood up from the couch and looked at us.

"So, how'd it go?" Holly sighed.

"Well, it could've been better."

"What happened to you guys?" Soda asked. "You look like a wreck, Darry." I did? I thought I just had that one cut on my arm.

"We got jumped by a Soc." Soda looked at me funny.

"Just one Soc? All by himself?"

"He's my ex-boyfriend. There were some other guys in his car, but they didn't attack us," Holly answered.

"Huh. Did he hurt you?"

"He pushed me down, but I didn't fight him."

"Oh. Well, I guess you got the worst of it, huh, Darry? You look beat."

"I'm tired of those Socs sticking their noses where they don't belong. We don't get in their business." Then I realized that Pony wasn't there. "Hey, where's Ponyboy?" Soda was quiet for a moment.

"He'll be back, Dar." I narrowed my eyes.

"Where did he go, Sodapop?" Just then, the door swung open and Pony walked in.

"See? I told ya he'd be back." I ignored him and looked at Ponyboy.

"Pony, where were you? You didn't tell me you were goin' somewhere."

"I just went out to see a movie. Sorry, I forgot to tell you." I sighed.

"Okay…" I wasn't entirely sure that he was telling me the truth. He can be real good at lying sometimes. But what else could he have been doing? And why didn't he want me to know about it? I don't know about this kid. One minute you trust him completely, and the next, you're watching his every move and wondering what the heck he's up to. And he wonders why 'I treat him like he is six instead of fourteen'. He doesn't have a whole lot of common sense, he forgets stuff a lot, he's sensitive, and I'm awful scared of losing him. And I almost did last time, so that's all the more reason to be protective.

Maybe if Holly and I get married, she could help me. I quickly shook that thought out of my head. It was too early to think about that. We've only been on two dates, one of which was fixed, and we only kissed once.

I guess I must've been really lost in thought because Soda was waving his hand in front of my face.

"Darry, you there?" I blinked.

"Yeah." Soda shook his head.

"What were you thinkin' about? 'Cause you were starin' at her chest the whole time." I felt my face heat up. I was? I was about to stutter an apology when I saw Holly glaring at Soda.

"No, you weren't, Darry. He's just trying to embarrass you."

"And it worked!" Soda cheered. Pony looked like he was about to burst out laughing. I don't get embarrassed very often, let alone blush like that, so it must've been pretty funny to them.

"You guys will never lay off, will you?"

"Nope!" Holly smiled.

"You guys have a lot of fun, don't you?" I laughed.

"You should've seen us all earlier today." I suddenly winced at the pain in my arm.

"Darry, you better get that taken care of before you bleed out all over the floor," Soda teased. I rolled my eyes.

"It's not that bad, Soda. And I ain't bleedin' all over the floor. Come on, Holly." I could still hear my brothers laughing at me as Holly followed me into the bathroom to get the first aid kit.

"That's actually a pretty bad cut, Darry," she said as I unwrapped the tourniquet I made for my arm.

"It's all right. What about you?" She shook her head.

"It's not as bad as yours. You were in the fight, too. Here, I'll help you." She started cleaning the cut and I fought the urge to cry out in pain. "Does it hurt real bad?"

"I'm okay," I said, forcing a smile. She wrapped my arm back up and then I helped with the scrape on her arm. "Hey, would you like to stay for dinner?"

"That would be great," she said happily. I grinned.

"Let's go, then." We walked back to where my brothers were laughing and goofing off. "Hey guys, Holly's staying with us for dinner, okay?"

"Okay, Dar." I looked at Holly.

"Well, uh, make yourself at home. I'm gonna make dinner. I don't imagine you really want to hang out with my brothers or anything…"

"Hey!" Soda yelled. I smiled.

"… well, you can do whatever you want. I'll come in and tell you when I'm done." Holly looked at me carefully.

"Can I stay in here with you?"

"Um, all right. I don't know how much fun that's gonna be for you, though."

"I'll manage." I felt really happy. I hadn't felt like this in the longest time. Maybe Pony and Soda were right. I do need a girlfriend. I need Holly.

**A/N: Sorry that was such a short chapter. I just thought that this was a good place to stop. And I also wrote a quick one-shot for the movie Ghost and I hope you all go read and review that. ;) Please? **


	11. Time for Dinner

**Holly POV**

I stood there, watching Darry as he started to make dinner. I kept thinking about our kiss and how great it was. Thinking about it now, I don't know what I ever saw in Chris. He might be handsome, but he is nothing but selfish and full of himself. When he said that he could show me a better time than Darry, that was a load of crap. Darry is already way better than him, and we've only been dating for a little while. Darry might be a greaser, but he has the good looks and he's not a selfish jerk. In fact, he's one of the least selfish people I know. Kissing Darry was way better than kissing a stuck-up Soc.

"Holly?" Darry's voice pulled me out of my thoughts.

"Yeah, Darry?"

"Seems all we've been doing is talking about me. What about you?"

"Well, I live by myself, but I don't mind. I actually like the quiet. I don't exactly hate my job, but I don't really like it that much." Darry looked at me questionably.

"Then why are you doing it if you don't like it? Why don't you find another job?"

"I don't know. I guess I really don't know what else to do. I saw a lot of advertisements for jobs, but I either didn't like them or I wasn't good at any of them. I took this job because I thought I could handle it and I wanted to help keep families together and stuff. I wouldn't quit now, though. I knew that awful guy you had to deal with before he quit, and for all I know there could be more guys like that. I wouldn't want to quit just so you guys could be stuck with one of them again. If you still had Mr. Richards and not me, he probably would've split you guys up already because of that broken window incident."

"Yeah, he probably would've. I guess we got lucky."

"Anyway, I'm actually a little glad I took the job. I got to meet you." Darry smiled warmly.

"Thanks. I'm glad too. Do you have any brothers or sisters?"

"I just have an older sister that I get annoyed with a lot. I mean, I don't even know how many boyfriends she's had. She has a new one just about every few weeks! Every time I talk to her, or maybe I should say _listen_ to her, all she talks about is her new boyfriend! I hardly get to talk. She doesn't even know that I'm dating you. I don't think she really loves any of her boyfriends." Darry sighed.

"I dated someone like that once. I really thought she loved me, too."

"Well, don't worry. I would never do that to you. I really want to tell my sister that she shouldn't be doing that, but I don't think that she would listen. I mean, think of all the guys that she's hurting." Darry sat down next to me.

"Well, at least there's one that she won't hurt," he said softly and then leaned in closer.

"And who would that be?" My face was now inches away from his.

"I don't know, who do you think?"

"I think I have a pretty good idea," I said, and our lips met for the second time that day.

'_I love you,' _I wanted to say, but I decided against it. It was too early to be saying that. The wonderful moment was cut short when I heard footsteps, and Darry pulled away. I looked back to see Sodapop.

"Hey, did you say you were cookin' or kissin'?" Darry grinned.

"Maybe a little of both."

"Ya know, I'll cook if you want me to." Darry shook his head and stood up.

"No, I'll do it." Soda laughed and walked away, leaving us alone again. Darry was quiet the rest of the time making dinner. I tried to think of something to say, but nothing came to mind that was worth saying, so I just sat there and watched him. "Holly, will you go get my brothers and tell them dinner's ready?" he asked when he was done.

"Okay." I got up and went into the living room to see Soda and Pony watching TV. "Hey guys, dinner's ready." Soda looked at me.

"You and Darry were bein' pretty quiet in there after I left you alone."

"I guess there was nothing much to say. We weren't kissing," I added, knowing that was the unspoken question. Ponyboy grinned in triumph.

"Ha, Soda, you owe me your paycheck!" Soda frowned.

"Awwww, man!" I raised an eyebrow.

"You guys bet on whether we were kissing or not?" Ponyboy nodded.

"Yeah, and now he owes me his paycheck!"

"Hey, don't rub it in," Soda said, sticking out his tongue.

"Come on, guys," I said, laughing slightly as they followed me into the kitchen.

"What was going on in there?" Darry asked.

"Nothin'…" Ponyboy answered, laughing a little. I took a seat next to Darry while Pony and Soda sat across from us. We started eating, and after a few minutes, Soda started tapping on his glass of chocolate milk. "Why are you doing that?" Pony whispered.

"I'm trying to get them to kiss so I can have my paycheck back."

"Soda, the bet's over, and people only do that for weddings. Face it, you lose." Soda didn't stop.

"Shhh, it might still work!" Darry and I exchanged glances.

"You know, we can hear you guys," Darry said, amused. Soda gave up.

"Darn it." When we were finished, I started getting ready to leave.

"You don't have to leave right away if you don't want to, I mean…" Darry started.

"No, I should probably get going. Thanks for letting me stay for dinner."

"No problem." I was about to leave when I remembered something.

"Oh, when's our next date?' Darry thought for a moment.

"How about next Saturday at 5:00?" I nodded.

"That sounds good. I'll see you then."

"See ya." I winked at him and left. 


	12. What Am I Supposed To Do?

**A/N: Sorry this took so long! I had writer's block, Christmas break, and I postponed this story to work on my Christmas one. Oh, yeah, read that if you haven't already! It's called A Very Curtis Christmas. I know you'll love it! Okay, onto the story! **

**Darry POV**

Holly and I have been together for a few months now, and we were just sitting on the couch and holding each other and kissing. I felt a lot better than I had in a long time. Holly suddenly sat up.

"What's wrong?" I asked. She sighed.

"I don't know, Darry. I've just been thinking… I mean, I love you, but…"

"What?"

"Something just doesn't feel right." My heart dropped. What was she saying? She couldn't be breaking up with me… no! I can't take that again! I just can't! I let myself fall in love with her because I trusted her. She can't just leave me now! And what does she mean by 'something doesn't feel right'? She's loved me since we first met; what's wrong now? I guess she must have saw how distressed I was because she started rubbing my back gently.

"Darry, sweetheart, I'm not breaking up with you…" I let out a sigh of relief. "It's just, well; I feel like… like I'm cheating for you or something."

"Huh?" What on earth was that supposed to mean?

"Well, it's just that… I'm your social worker. We shouldn't have this kind of relationship. If someone found out about us…"

"Then just quit your job and find a new one."

"That's the thing. I don't want to do that because as long as I'm your social worker, it's like I'm protecting you guys from being split up. It's not like there's any good reasons for that to happen, but with that neighbor of yours you told me about, and a social worker like Mr. Richards, you could be split up faster than you can say, 'I didn't mean to', even if your brothers were only just one minute late for curfew. I don't know what to do, Darry."

I thought about it for a minute. What did it matter? We didn't deserve to be split up. And since I had barely escaped losing my brothers because of when Pony ran away, we've all been careful about everything. Holly was sort of protecting us, but it wasn't cheating. But on the other hand, there would be problems if someone found out that I was dating her. No one knew that we were together except for the gang. But then I remembered. Someone else did know. And it's someone we're not particularly friends with. And that someone is none other than that Soc that hates me and used to date Holly. Chris Williams.

**A/N: Sorry that was so short! I was going to extend this chapter, but I just really felt that that was an awesome ending sentence! Don't kill me please! I promise it won't take as long to update this time. I won't make you guys wait very long, okay? Oh, and today's Darry's birthday! Happy Birthday, Darry! :D**


	13. What I Like About You

**Holly POV**

"What's the matter, Darry?" I asked. He was really distracted.

"Holly… Chris knows. He knows that we're together." Oh. _That's _what he was thinking about. I can't believe I completely forgot about that. But what could we do? There isn't really anything we _can_ do. He knows what he knows. We just have to hope that he doesn't decide to use it against us or tell anyone else. I wouldn't be surprised if he did, though. Well, whatever happens, I'll stick with Darry the whole way.

"I'm sure it'll be all right. Don't worry about it. Look, I shouldn't have even brought it up. Just forget it, okay?" Darry smiled and threw an arm around my shoulders. I leaned over and kissed his cheek. "I love you."

"I love you, too." Suddenly, I noticed that the window wasn't broken anymore.

"Did you finally get a new window?"

"Yep. And guess who paid for it?"

"You?" I guessed. He shook his head.

"Nope. You know how I told you that I was a little worried since Ponyboy was coming home later than usual? He got a job just so he could pay for it himself." Darry laughed. "I guess he knew that I would never agree to let him get a job to pay for it, so he just didn't tell me. Sodapop knew, though. I swear, those two will be the death of me," he said, partly joking.

His brothers were such good kids, but they aren't perfect little angels or anything. Darry worries about him so much. At this rate, he might just have grey hair by the time he's thirty. He just laughed when I told him that one time. I don't blame him for worrying so much, though. It's a lot of pressure; taking care of two teenagers and always having to make sure he's doing the right thing.

It amazes me how much they care for each other. I guess it's not too surprising because they lost their parents and they're all they have left. But this wasn't your ordinary situation. My sister wouldn't do this for me. She would move on and stick me in some foster home. I know that sounds mean, but how many people out there would do the same as Darry?

I don't think there's any greasers out there quite like Darry and his gang. They looked the part more than played it. They're mostly just good friends that look out for each other. Of course, I don't mean they're perfect. They've probably done their share of unlawful things. Especially Dallas. But they're actually a pretty nice group of guys.

I held Darry close. I wish we could just stay like this forever.

"Holly?" His voice broke into my thoughts.

"Oh, sorry. I was just thinking."

"Were you, now?" he murmured, leaning down to kiss me. I giggled and kissed him back. I love Darry more than anyone I have ever met. I looked into his eyes. I remembered when I first met him. Back then, his eyes were hard and icy; but now they were soft and full of love. He's always so sweet.

I was in the middle of kissing him again when the door swung open. Darry broke the kiss and looked over.

"What are you guys doing?" Pony and Soda laughed.

"It's our house, too, Darry. We don't have to knock," Ponyboy said. Darry rolled his eyes.

"I thought you guys wouldn't be back until ten." Soda grinned.

"I hate to break it to ya, Dar, but it _is_ ten." Darry gave him a strange look and then checked his watch.

"Huh. I guess we lost track of time. How was the movie?"

"It was great, but Johnny and I might've been the only ones paying attention to it. Soda couldn't sit still, Two-Bit and Steve were goofing off, and Dally was flirting with some girl," Pony said. Darry laughed.

"That sounds about right."

"And I suppose you had a good time, Darry?" Sodapop asked, looking over at me.

"You bet." He winked at me and I shoved his arm a little.

"I should probably get going," I said.

"Okay. I'll see you around?" I smiled. That's another thing I like about Darry. He doesn't demand that I stay and lets me go as I please. Chris did the exact opposite, and I found it very annoying. Darry is always very polite.

"You bet," I answered, winking at him this time.


	14. Lipstick, TwoBit, and Holly's Sister

**Darry POV**

I noticed that my brothers seemed to be staring at me after Holly left.

"What?" I asked.

A huge grin crossed Soda's face and he said, "Nice lipstick, Dar." Then they both started laughing at me. I raised an eyebrow. What on earth were they…? I lifted my hand to my lips and I saw what was, sure enough, red lipstick. Oh. Holly was wearing lipstick and we kissed.

"Ha,ha, very funny," I said dryly while I wiped my mouth off with my sleeve.

"It's okay, Darry. It actually looks pretty good on you!" Ponyboy teased.

"You two are just jealous."

"Of what? Your lipstick?" I rolled my eyes. They were still laughing at me when Two-Bit came in.

"Hey, guys! What's shakin'?" he said with a wide grin. He sounded like he was a little drunk. No, more like a lot drunk. Then again, he could actually be sober and just be pretending to be drunk. You just never know with him.

"Hey, Two-Bit! What are you doing here? I thought you were going home," Sodapop said.

"Nah. I decided to drop in on you guys for a bit. How was your date, Superman?" He slurred.

"It was great," I replied.

"Oh, yeah? So when's the wedding?" My eyes widened.

"What?" Did he just say what I think he did?

"The wedding, Darry. When is it?"

"Don't you think it's a little early for that?" I do love her, but I don't think I'm ready for marriage. That's a big step. Plus, there's still that problem- she's our social worker. She'd have to quit her job, and she already told me that she didn't want to.

"You're right." That took me off guard. Did Two-Bit actually say that? "Maybe tomorrow." I should've known that sentence wasn't finished yet. I just rolled my eyes and shook my head. "You know what, guys? I should probably get goin'." I raised an eyebrow.

"Already? You just got here."

"I know." He had a stupid grin on his face.

"So, you just come in, ask me how my date went and when I'm going to marry her, and then just leave? You know, if you brought a notepad and a pen, I would say that you were stalking me." I swear, Two-Bit is the most ridiculous guy I know. He's even more ridiculous when he's drunk.

"Nah. I got better things to do than stalk you." He looked at me like I was stupid. "I just wanted to see how it went. Ya know, get the facts." Get the facts? Seriously? That would be like if I called one of my friends, asked them how much money they had and when they were going to spend it, and then hung up. "Oh, by the way, Ponyboy, that was a great movie." Pony stared at him, incredulous.

"You didn't pay attention to any of it!"

"I know. I'll see you guys later!" He waved goodbye and left, forgetting to shut the door.

"Bye, Two-Bit!" We shouted after him. I walked over and shut the door and then turned to my brothers.

"Hey, did you guys ever notice that he either slams the door or forgets to shut it altogether?" They laughed.

**Holly POV (A few days later)**

I was about ready to head over to Darry's when the phone rang. I groaned and picked it up.

"Hello?"

"Hi!" It was my sister.

"What is it?" I asked. What on earth could she possibly want?

"I heard you have a new boyfriend. You don't like Chris anymore?"

"No. And I'm not sure why I ever liked him. And yes, I do have a boyfriend." _And if you'd paid attention, you would've known already, _I thought to myself.

"Can I meet him? I'll make lunch." I nearly screamed 'NO!' into the phone. I don't want her to be making eyes at Darry. I mean, I trust Darry, but I don't trust my sister. But I didn't get a chance to say anything. She had this nasty habit of making decisions for me, and it annoyed me to no end. Why bother asking if you're not even going to let me answer? "Great! See you later!"

"But…!" She hung up. I sighed in frustration. "Oh, that's great all right," I mumbled to myself. "Just great."

**Darry POV**

It was around noon when I heard a knock on the door. Who's that? No one knocks on the door, unless it's… I opened the door. Holly.

"Hi, Darry." She gave me a quick kiss.

"You know, I keep telling you that it's not necessary to knock on the door. Just come in."

"I don't know, Darry. I think it would feel weird to just… barge in." I laughed.

"Everyone else seems to be able to do it without a problem. Come on." She still hadn't stepped in.

"Um, Darry, my sister called and she wants to meet you. She wants to make lunch or something." Huh. I definitely didn't see that coming.

"Oh. Well, I guess we could go. I mean, you've met my brothers. You told me about your sister and I still haven't met her. Our families should be able to get along, right? Ponyboy! Sodapop!" I called. They came running in.

"What is it, Darry?" Ponyboy asked.

"I'm going with Holly to meet her sister. You guys will be all right while I'm gone?"

"Of course, Dar. We'll be fine," Sodapop answered. "I'll make sure that Ponyboy doesn't get in too much trouble!" Pony grinned and shoved him. I smiled.

"See you guys later." I closed the door and Holly and I got in her car. We were about to leave when she looked over at me.

"Our families should be able to get along?" I just smiled in response. She knew what I was talking about when I said that. She smiled back and leaned over, kissing my cheek. "I love you."

"I love you, too." Then she started the car and we were off. We got to her sister's house about ten minutes later. Holly knocked on the door.

"Just a minute!" That must be her sister. That voice was strangely familiar though… but how could that be? When she answered the door, my heart nearly stopped beating. I knew exactly why that voice was familiar. "Darry…?" Holly gave me a strange look. It took me a few seconds to find my voice.

"Rebecca…"

**A/N: Surprise! Yes, that's the same Rebecca that was mentioned earlier in the story that broke Darry's heart. I bet you didn't see that coming! :D Anyway, review please!**


	15. What a Mess

Previously….

"_Just a minute!" That must be her sister. That voice was strangely familiar though… but how could that be? When she answered the door, my heart nearly stopped beating. I knew exactly why that voice was familiar. "Darry…?" Holly gave me a strange look. It took me a few seconds to find my voice._

"_Rebecca…"_

Holly stared at me. "You know her?"

At the same time, Rebecca said, "Holly, you're dating Darry?" I sighed. Rebecca had a strange look on her face. "Well, uh, come in, I guess. And have a seat. I'll go finish making lunch…" She walked into the kitchen, leaving me alone with Holly.

"Darry…" she started. I lowered my head and ran a hand through my hair.

"Holly… do you remember our second date? When you told me about her and I told you that I dated someone like her once? Well, that _was_ her…" Holly stared at me.

"Why didn't you tell me that you used to date my sister?"

"I didn't know that you were sisters…"

"She never mentioned me?"

"Actually, I think she did once. I guess that's why your name was vaguely familiar to me when we met… I just didn't realize why…" Holly looked upset. I honestly had no idea! I thought it had to be a coincidence that she had the same last name as my former girlfriend, and I didn't remember Rebecca saying that her sister's name was Holly. It hadn't been important at the time. "Holly, you know I love you."

"I know. But she…"

"No buts," I interrupted. I kissed her gently to prove my point. She cupped my cheek with her left hand.

"Okay," she whispered. I smiled. I started leaning towards her for another kiss, but I turned around when Rebecca cleared her throat.

"Lunch is ready. Come on," she said, waving us into the kitchen. I sat down next to Holly, while Rebecca sat across from us on the other side of the table. "Hey, Darry, I made your favorite, grilled chicken. I hope you like it," Rebecca said, winking at me. I smiled for her sake, but then I looked over at Holly. She was definitely not smiling. If her eyes could shoot lasers, Rebecca would be a pile of ashes on the floor. I put my arm around Holly to calm her. Then we started eating. The chicken was really good. Rebecca always made great chicken. I used to always tell her that she would still be making it for our kids one day. I pushed that thought out of my head.

"Would you like some coffee, Darry?" she asked. I nodded. "Black?" I nodded again. She flashed me a smile and went to get the coffee. Holly said she wasn't thirsty. She said that in a really bitter tone, and I kissed the top of her head to help her relax. Rebecca came back with my coffee and sat back down. I took a sip.

Ponyboy and Soda always said I was weird for liking it since it's so bitter. I don't mind it, but Pony and Soda were always big on flavors, especially when it involved chocolate. They would have their chocolate milk while I drank my black coffee and Soda would just shake his head and say, "Oh, well, it does match your personality." I just grinned at him. I was pulled out of my thoughts when I heard Rebecca ask, "so, how long have you two been dating?"

"Almost a year," Holly replied. It almost sounded like she was gloating. Rebecca nodded.

"Well, I dated him for a little over two years." I could hardly believe that she just said that. Holly nearly choked on her food. I bit my lip and put my arm around her again.

"Holly…" she shrugged me off.

"Excuse me. I have to go to the bathroom." She got up out of her chair and left the room. I sighed. Now she was really mad. Rebecca scooted her chair closer to me.

"Hey, Dar…" That was the last straw.

"What are you trying to do?"

"I missed you, Darry…" She lifted her hand to my face and I pushed her away.

"Yeah? Well, then maybe you should've thought about that before you decided to go on a date someone else behind my back! You had your chance!" I paused for a moment, but I went on before she could interrupt. "You broke my heart that night. Did you know I was going to ask you to marry me?" She looked stunned. "And don't bother apologizing now. It's too late for that. I love Holly now, and there's nothing you or anyone else can do to change that."

I heard the tremor in my voice and I realized that I haven't been this angry in a long time; not even when I snapped at Pony for breaking the window. Rebecca was purposefully trying to make Holly upset. She had the nerve to practically _brag_ about the fact that I had dated her longer (so far), while she was all nice to me and told me that she missed me. I was hurt, too. Hurt and angry. That was never a good combination. My breakup with Rebecca had always been a touchy subject for me, and it still was. Even though we haven't been together for so long, it still hurt to think about it. We haven't even spoken to each other since then, either.

"Look, I'm sorry that I hurt you. I made a big mistake, okay? But I just want you back. I still love you. I know you're mad, but don't you still love me a little bit? Anyway, I never really dated all those guys Holly told you about. I lied to her about that. I told myself I would never date again after I hurt you that night. I've been waiting for you, Darry. Only you. I promise. I know you're dating my sister, but… how about we start over and try again?" She traced my neck with her finger. I was downright shocked. I didn't say anything; I couldn't think. I couldn't move. She moved closer to me until our faces were all but touching. My heart pounded in my chest. Then our lips met in a passionate kiss and my eyes fluttered closed.

**A/N: Uh, oh! D:**


	16. Breakup

I heard a loud gasp. I turned around to see Holly; a shocked and horrified expression on her face. I suddenly realized what I'd just done. She stormed up to me and slapped me, hard. There were tears in her eyes and I knew that she was about to cry. My heart broke. I just did almost the same thing to her as Rebecca had done to me two years ago.

"Holly, I…"

"Save it, Darrel!" I winced at that. She hasn't used my whole name since we first met. "I can't believe you! I trusted you! I trusted you! I thought you were different, but I guess that I was wrong." She ran out the door and I followed her. When I caught up with her, I laid my hand on her shoulder and she stopped, turning to face me. "Leave me alone! Why don't you just leave me alone and go make out with my sister some more!" She tried to run off again, but I stopped her.

"Because, I love you…"

"You were kissing her, and now you expect me to believe that? I heard all the things you two said. I knew I couldn't trust her, Darry. But I thought I could trust you and you ruined that. You could have easily pushed her away. And you would have, if you loved me at all."

"But I _do_ love you. I'm sorry for what I did. It all just happened so fast… I couldn't think…"

"About anything but her and how good it felt to kiss her again? Yeah, I know. Well, I hope you're happy." I wanted to tell her that she was wrong, but that had been what I was thinking about at the time. But I was wrong. I didn't want to date Rebecca again.

"Holly…" She shook her head and got in her car.

"Goodbye, Darrel. I'll see you next state visit to check up on your brothers." She drove away, and I just stood there, rooted to the ground, and hating myself for what I did. A tear rolled down my cheek and I fell to the ground, hiding my face in my hands. What was wrong with me?

I thought about all the times I had recently screwed up. First, I slapped Ponyboy and caused him to run away, and then we started to get along a little better until I freaked out on him about breaking the window, and now, I made the huge mistake of kissing my girlfriend's sister, who just happened to be Rebecca. What a mess. I had been forgiven for those first two mistakes, but what about the third one?

This was a different situation altogether. I would always have my brothers because they always seemed to be able to come around and forgive me, but Holly was my girlfriend. I stupidly kissed her sister on the spur of the moment. She wasn't going to just be able to suddenly forgive me and move on. I had to fix this myself. But how? Would she even want to talk to me again?

I wanted to die right there. What am I going to do? I love Holly, but now she probably wishes that she never had to see my face again. Maybe I should just forget it and be single again. But something told me that that wouldn't fix anything. It wouldn't help me, and it certainly wouldn't help Holly. With that in mind, I got up and started walking back to my house.

I looked back toward Rebecca's house and realized that it had been just a big, stupid joke. She hadn't come out after me. She just used me for some reason. I felt like such an idiot. In that one, stupid, fake moment, I lost my girlfriend. Somehow, I've got to make this right again.

When I walked in the door of my house, Pony and Soda came in.

"So, Dar, how'd it go? Where's Holly?" The memory of what I had done only a good twenty minutes ago flashed in my head and I looked down, too ashamed of myself to say anything. "Darry?" Ponyboy asked, concerned, "What's wrong?"

"I messed up," I said in a husky voice. My voice was so quiet that I could barely hear myself.

"What? Darry, what happened?" he asked again. I sighed heavily.

"Holly's sister… she's… she's Rebecca." Pony and Soda were shocked. "I… she made Holly upset and when she left the room, I tried to tell Rebecca to leave her alone… but she said that she just wanted me back... and… and we kissed. I just wasn't thinking! Holly saw it. She slapped me and left." I was mad at myself, and I felt embarrassed. I hoped my face wasn't red. I hated looking weak like this. My brothers looked like deer caught in the headlights.

Soda snapped out of it and said, "Gee, Dar, I'm sorry…" I shook my head.

"It was all my fault." My brothers must have sensed that I wanted to be alone and they left the room. I sighed and sunk down into the armchair. Then I glanced over at the phone. Maybe I should call her… but would she even want to listen? I guess it was worth a try. I dialed her number and picked up the phone. _Please pick up,_ I thought. I was both relieved and worried when she did.

"Hello?" I could tell by her voice that she was still upset.

"Holly, it's me, Darry. Listen, I really need to talk to you. I just wanted to say that I'm sor…" she cut me off before I could continue.

"Sorry? Well, maybe you should've thought about that before you made out with my sister!" I winced.

"I didn't 'make out' with her, Holly. And I _am _sorry. Really. And I love you. Please…" She hung up. My heart sank as I put the phone back down. Now what am I going to do?

**Holly POV**

I stared at the phone that I slammed down into the receiver with tearful eyes. I picked up a pencil and started to write in my diary.

_Dear Diary,_

_I just hung up on Darry. One of the last few men in this world that I thought were decent. But I guess I was wrong. I left the room for just three minutes, and I came back to see Darry, the man I thought I could trust, the man who told me that he loved me and not to worry, kissing my sister like nothing else mattered and I never existed._

_I never thought Darry would do anything like that to me. Or anyone, for that matter. Why would he do that? He knows how it feels, too, because my sister did nearly the same thing to him a couple years ago. I heard everything they said. At first he was defending me and I felt a little better after that, but then she was all 'take me back, Darry. I still love you. Who cares about my sister? Don't you love me anymore?' Then Darry fell for her stupid charms and kissed her. Ugh. I thought Darry had a lot more self-control than that. _

_It did look like he felt bad, though. He looked like he was about to cry when I slapped him. I just don't know what to think. I still care about Darry, but now I'm really mad at him, and he says he loves me, but now I don't know what to believe. _

_Oh, Darry__…_

_I don't want to be his social worker anymore. I don't want to have to keep going over there and deal with Darry's 5 million apologies I'm sure I'm going to get every time I see him. Sorry isn't enough. At first, I didn't want to quit or anything because I liked them and I really liked Darry, and I also wanted to make sure they wouldn't be stuck with a social worker like the one they had before. I think they'll be okay now, though. They're good kids, and Darry is a good guardian. I could never deny that, no matter how mad I was at him._

_This is so hard. I always would try to see things from Darry's perspective and always take his side__…__ but I can't do it this time. All I can come up with is that he all of a sudden decided to kiss my sister behind my back and then expect me to be okay with it and just forgive him. I can't take Darry's side this time. I don't know how on earth he could fix this._

_I'm only going to go back to his house one more time to check on his brothers and say goodbye. So, unless he can find a way to make it all better in one hour, we're over for sure. _

_It's just so strange thinking about how in love I was with him this morning, and now how I'm planning to leave him. But do I really want to leave him forever? Thinking about how sad he looked when I left, I'm not so sure. Plus, we had been together for a few months up until today. But one thing is for sure: I'm no longer their social worker after I'm done with the next one. _

_Holly_

I put down my pencil and sighed. Now what am I going to do?

**A/N: As you can probably guess, I made the ending of both Darry's and Holly's perspective the same on purpose… Oh, and guess what? I found a font on Microsoft Word 2010 that is called Curtis! How cool is that? :D **


	17. Brotherly Bonding

**Ponyboy POV**

The next state visit was probably one of the worst and most awkward ever. Right now, I would almost rather have Mr. Richards back than this. Darry looked like he was going to be sick or something. I felt sorry for him. He'd been trying to make it up to Holly, but she still hasn't forgiven him. When Darry answered the door, she didn't even look at him when she came in. She acted really formal the whole time. Darry kept trying to talk to her, but she would just ignore him or glare at him. Darry shoved his hands into his pockets and looked down.

When Holly was about to leave, she turned to us and said, "Well, guys, this is my last visit, so…" Darry's head shot up.

"What?" She ignored him.

"Someone else is going to replace me after this. I don't know who it will be, but I know you guys will be fine."

"You're quitting?" Darry asked. She ignored him again.

"Take care, guys." She opened the door and was about to walk out when Darry stopped her.

"Holly…"

"Ms. Jensen!" She snapped.

"Holly, I just…" She interrupted him again.

"It's over, Darrel!" It was quiet for a moment. "Goodbye, boys." Sodapop and I waved goodbye and she closed the door. Darry didn't move for a while.

"Darry…" Soda called quietly. Darry still didn't turn around. Soda walked up to Darry and put a hand on his shoulder. Darry shrugged him off and suddenly stormed off to his room and slammed the door. I bit my lip and looked over at Soda. "We should probably leave him alone…" he said, but his expression betrayed what he was saying. I knew he wanted to comfort Darry. I did too, but I'm not sure that there was anything we could say to help. He probably wanted to be alone anyways. Soda sucked in his cheeks. "Well, tell Darry that I'm goin' to the Dingo with Steve, okay?" I nodded.

"Sure."

"You wanna come?"

"No, that's okay. I'll just stay here." I really didn't want to go. Steve would just be annoyed with me and he would probably just glare at me the whole time. I wasn't in the mood to deal with Steve.

"Okay. See you later, then."

"Bye, Soda."

When he left, I almost walked into my room to draw or something, but then I thought that I should tell Darry that Soda left. If I waited until Darry found out himself, he would probably get mad at me and Soda for not telling him right away. He was already upset enough. I started biting my fingernails as I walked over to Darry's room. I slowly opened the door. Darry was sitting there with his head in his hands. He was completely still and I don't think he even noticed that I came in. I sighed and walked up closer.

"Hey, Darry…" I said softly, poking his arm. He looked up at me.

"What, Ponyboy?" he asked in a low, quiet voice.

"Um, I just wanted to tell you that Soda went to the Dingo with Steve, so he'll be back later." Darry nodded.

"Thanks for tellin' me." It was quiet again.

"Darry… you okay?" He sighed and ran a hand through his hair. He looked at me and the icy look took over.

"I'm fine." Darry always does that. When he gets upset and you ask him if he's okay, he always says 'I'm fine' but it's always obvious that he's not. I guess that he thinks that if he says that he's fine, everyone will believe it. He's trying to convince himself, too. I don't blame him, though. What's he supposed to say? 'No, I messed up and my girlfriend hates me and I don't know what to do'? I shook my head. I needed to make Darry feel better. I smiled at him, hoping to cheer him up a little. He halfheartedly smiled back and messed up my hair.

"Darry!" I complained, pulling a comb out of my back pocket to fix my hair. He grabbed it out of my hand and waved it up high. "Aw, come on, Dar!"

"If you want it, you'll have to get it yourself!"

"Bully!" I said, sticking my tongue out at him. He laughed and gave it back, and just when I thought I was in the clear, he started tickling me. I started to laugh and I fell down, and Darry still wouldn't quit. I was laughing so hard that it hurt. "Uncle!" I screamed, still laughing. Darry grinned and he finally stopped. I laughed one more time and tried to catch my breath. Darry held out his hand to help me up. I pretended to be mad at him and I stubbornly refused to take his hand as I crossed my arms over my chest. Darry rolled his eyes.

"What's the matter, little brother? You don't like being tickled?" he said dryly. I shot him a mock death stare. He shot one back at me, and I swear it would be real scary if I didn't know he was just messing with me. Then he cracked a grin and held out his hand again. I took it this time and he pulled me up. I smiled back and I saw laughter dancing in his eyes. It was times like these that reminded me that Darry could still be my fun big brother that he used to be sometimes. "Thanks, kiddo," he said, hugging me tight.

"You're welcome, big brother." I hugged him back, glad that I was able to cheer him up, at least for the time being. Darry pulled away and punched my shoulder lightly.

"Well, what do you wanna do now?" I shrugged.

"I don't know. I was gonna draw or read something, I guess." Darry nodded and looked away for a second.

"You wanna see a movie?"

"By myself? Nah, not really."

"Do you want to go with me, then?" I looked up at him, surprised.

"You don't like movies!" He shook his head.

"Nevermind that. You wanna go, or what?"

"Sure!" I hugged Darry again and he laughed.

"All right, little buddy. Let's go."


	18. Cheater, Cheater, Pants On Fire

**A/N: I just realized a little while ago that I didn't update at all during June! I'll try to update again this month to fix it!**

The movie was pretty good. Darry almost dozed off a couple times and I kept having to look over and make sure that he wasn't sleeping. Sometimes I just didn't understand Darry. I love movies. You would think, with all the work he does and all that stress, he would want to escape for a while. But Darry just doesn't dig movies like I do.

We walked back home after the movie was over.

"So, how'd you like it, Dar?" I asked.

"Well, I did manage to stay awake, so I guess it wasn't too bad," Darry answered, grinning at me. I rolled my eyes and pushed him a little.

"Only because I had to keep waking you up!"

"Our life is enough without inspecting other people's. Heck, you even made it into a book!"

"Yeah, but don't you ever just want to get away from it all for a while?"

"Pony, if I wanted to get away, I would take a vacation. But we can't afford that."

_It sure would be nice, though, _I thought.

I guess Sodapop got home before us because the truck was back in the driveway.

"Where were you guys?" he asked when we walked in.

"At the movies," I said. Soda raised his eyebrows.

"You hate movies, Darry!" Darry glanced over at me and smiled.

"I could spare one time. I've seem worse movies, anyways." Soda looked happy. He was probably glad that I cheered Darry up and we haven't fought since the broken window incident.

"You guys had a good time then?"

"I guess so." Then I heard some laughing coming from the other room.

"Is everybody here?" I asked. Soda nodded. We walked in the kitchen and everyone was standing around the table, watching Two-Bit and Steve arm wrestle. Two-Bit looked over at us.

"Well, nice of you guys to join us. What ya been up to?"

"Darry an' Pony went to the movies," Soda said.

"Really? I thought you hated movies, Superman." Darry was about to reply when Steve slammed Two-Bit's arm down. Two-Bit jumped up. "Ow! That wasn't fair! You cheated! I want a rematch!"

"Dude, you can't cheat at arm wrestling. You shoulda been paying better attention," Steve said.

"You still cheated! Cheater, cheater, pants on fire!" Everyone burst out laughing.

"Really, Two-Bit?" Steve managed to choke out between laughs.

"Yeah! I still want a refund!" By now, I was laughing so hard that I could hardly breathe. Darry rolled his eyes but there was a big grin on his face. I'll tell you what, Two-Bit was somethin' else.

"You mean a rematch?" Steve said, trying to stop laughing.

"Whatever! Laugh it up all you want, but I'll beat you next time."

"Yeah, sure."

"Hey, Darry, where's your girlfriend?" Darry's face fell.

"She, uh… I… we're not together anymore." Darry swallowed hard and it was quiet for a minute.

"Oh, sorry, man. What happened?" Darry just shook his head. I knew he didn't want to talk about it. I was a little frustrated. I finally got him to feel better and now he was upset again. Darry shifted uncomfortably and Two-Bit cleared his throat. "Well, uh, we just can't stand around! How about we play Card Rumble again or something?" I put a hand on Darry's shoulder and he smiled half-heartedly, then he went back outside, slamming the door a little. I didn't go after him. He probably just wanted some space. I went over and sat next to Johnny.

"What's a Card Rumble?" he asked, amused.

"I dunno. Probably some weird game Two-Bit made up," I said. Two-Bit could probably turn almost anything into a game.

"How about we play the quiet game? I bet you couldn't shut up for ten seconds," Steve suggested.

"You're the one to talk. No one likes that game, anyways. It's boring!" Two-Bit shoved Steve.

"Two-Bit, you are way louder than me."

"Am not!"

"Am too!"

"Am not!"

"Am too!" Johnny and I exchanged glances. Sodapop looked like he was about to crack up again. Then, out of nowhere, a pillow came flying and hit Two-Bit on the back of his head.

"Hey!" Two-Bit exclaimed. He looked behind him to see Dally grinning wickedly.

"I was wondering what it would take to get you to shut up." Two-Bit cocked an eyebrow.

"Oh, really? That's funny, because I was wondering how you feel about… this!" Two-Bit threw a pillow at Dally and missed. Dally laughed.

"You missed."

"Why, thank you, Captain Obvious," Two-Bit said dryly. Dally looked proud of himself and started to drink some more of his beer when another pillow flew through the air and hit him square in the face, spilling beer all over himself. We all cracked up hard. Man, too bad we didn't get that on video.  
>Or at least a picture of Dally's face. Now THAT was gold.<p>

"You know, drinking is bad for your health," Sodapop said, still laughing hard. Dally grabbed a towel and wiped off his face.

"You think that's gonna stop me?" Dally got another beer from the refrigerator, walked over to Soda, and poured it all over his head. My jaw dropped. Soda stood there, shocked.

"Aw, man, now… what's Darry gonna say? He's gonna think I've been drinkin'. I smell like beer!"

"That makes two of us. And he ain't gonna think you've been drinkin'. Beer goes in your mouth, not on your head."

"_No_, _really_?" Soda said sarcastically. I looked over at Johnny and he stifled a laugh. I wonder how long this fight was gonna go on. I thought it was bad when Soda, Steve, and Two-Bit were all in the same room, but adding Dallas made it worse. I looked around and I saw that Darry still hadn't come back in. I thought he would've, considering all the raucous. I got up.

"Where are you going, Pony?" Johnny asked.

"I'm going to check on Darry. I thought he woulda come back in by now." He nodded.

"Oh." I went outside to look for Darry. He wasn't on the porch, which is where I thought he would be. I looked all around the yard and I still couldn't find him. I got a little worried. If he was going somewhere, he would've told us, right? I went back inside and tapped Soda on the shoulder.

"What, Ponyboy?"

"Soda, I can't find Darry."

**A/N: Where'd Darry go? D: Read the next chapter to find out! And Review!**


	19. Shot

"What do you mean you can't find him?" Sodapop asked, concerned.

"He's not here. I looked outside," I said.

"He probably just took a walk or something. You know Darry. He'll be fine; don't worry."

"Okay…" He was probably right about that, but I couldn't help but be a little worried. Darry never goes anywhere without telling us where he was going, so I went to look for him. Where did he go? If he did take a walk, how was I going to find him?

**Darry POV**

I probably should've told my brothers where I was going, but I hadn't been thinking about that at the time. I just knew I had to clear things up with Holly. There had to be something I could do to get her to forgive me. Maybe I didn't deserve it, but when Two-Bit mentioned her, it all hit me again. I missed her, and I needed to get her back. I can't just give up. I broke her heart, and now I have to set things right. Because I love her.

I was getting closer to her house when I suddenly stopped, nervous. What if she just slammed the door in my face? I closed my eyes. I had to try. I started walking again when I heard a gunshot, and then loud, high pitched scream. What happened? I went towards the direction of the scream. I got closer. There was someone lying on the ground, and there was blood surrounding them. By the sound of the scream… it sounded like a girl. Holly? I started running now, my heart racing. _Not Holly. Anyone but Holly. _I stopped dead, my face flushing.

It _was_ Holly. I dropped to my knees beside her.

"Holly?" My voice was breaking. "Holly, it's me, Darry. Can you hear me? Please, wake up! Oh, Holly, please don't do this to me!" Tears started falling down my face. I can't lose her! Especially not now! I heard someone calling my name.

"Darry!" It was Ponyboy. He stopped next to me. "Darry, what happened?" I shook my head.

"I don't know. I think she got shot."

"Is she…" he trailed off.

"NO!" I shouted, angry that he would even bring that up. Pony flinched, and I tried to calm down, but that was pretty much impossible at this point. "Call an ambulance, hurry!" He started running for the nearest phone. I looked back at Holly.

"It's gonna be okay," I said, taking her hand in mine. I pushed her hair back with the other, smiling weakly, trying not to break down any further. Her pulse was getting weaker.

_Come on, Ponyboy._

He came running up a few moments later.

"They're on their way." I nodded.

"Thanks, Pony. You should go back home now, all right?" He put his hand on my shoulder.

"She'll be okay, Dar." I nodded again, trying to smile. He left, and I looked back at Holly again. I sniffed, wiping my eyes. It was kind of pointless, since the tears kept coming down anyways.

"Just hang on, Holly. Everything's gonna be fine." The ambulance got here a few minutes later. I gently picked her up and carried her over. A few guys came out and put her on a stretcher and into the ambulance. "Please hurry. She's hurt real bad," I said, trying to hold back more tears. Then they drove away, and I fell to the ground, sobbing. What if she didn't make it? I would never forgive myself.

No. I can't think like that. She'll be fine. She has to be. But then I remembered her face when she saw me kiss Rebecca, and I cried harder, feeling like I was the lowest form of life on the planet.

After a few minutes, I tried to pull myself together. I wiped my eyes and took a deep breath, running back to my house. I ran inside, grabbing the keys to the truck.

"Darry, are you going to the hospital?" I turned around to see Pony and Soda.

"Yeah. Did the rest of the gang leave?" I asked.

"They left about ten minutes ago," Ponyboy answered.

"Sorry about Holly, Dar," Sodapop said. I looked down and swallowed thickly.

"I gotta go. I'll see you guys later, okay?" My voice was so quiet that I could barely hear myself. My brothers looked like they were worried about me. They really aren't used to me being so emotional. I'm supposed to be hard and tough, able to withstand most anything without shedding so much as a single tear. But lately, it's been really hard. Since Mom and Dad died, there have been so many times that I just wanted to give in and let it all out, but I had to be strong for my brothers.

I really wish that bad things would quit happening to us so often. Lately, it's been like my brothers and I were problem magnets or something. I sighed. I hated looking weak. I straightened up, and tried to look less like I was going to curl up and cry and more like the tough, steely-eyed man that I was. I turned around and walked out the door, then got in the truck and headed to the hospital. I smiled grimly. If I had a dollar for every time I did that… I'd be one heck of a rich man.

When I got there, I went up to the desk and asked about Holly.

"Are you part of her immediate family?"

"No, but…" I started.

"Then I'm afraid you can't see her yet. She's in surgery right now. That's all I can tell you at this time. I'm sorry, sir." I turned around and sat down in one of the chairs, feeling frustrated and worried. I looked down at my hands, and realized that they were covered with dried blood. My shirt had blood stains on it as well. It made me feel uneasy. I should've changed my shirt, but I hadn't noticed the stains until now. I went to the bathroom to wash my hands. I winced as I washed off the blood.

_Holly…_

I blinked back more tears. I was tired of crying. I just wanted everything to be okay again. I just wanted her back… I wanted to tell her how much I love her… find a way to get her to believe me when I say that I'm _so_ sorry for what I did…

_If she lives…_

I shook my head. I can't think like that.

Everything would be okay. It has to be. Maybe it seemed like someone I loved was always in trouble, but it usually worked out in the end. I just hoped that it would be okay this time too.


	20. Forgiveness

**Holly POV**

I opened my eyes and looked around. Where was I? Everything was white. Was I in a… hospital? That's strange… I can't remember anything happening to me. I looked over and saw Darry sitting in a chair next to the bed, asleep. Why was he here? I tried to sit up and felt a sudden jolt of pain. I let out a whimper and laid back down. I wonder what happened… Just then, Darry stirred and opened his eyes.

"Holly! You're awake!" he exclaimed, sounding relieved. He reached down to push a strand of hair out of my eyes but I slapped his hand away. Hurt flashed in his eyes and I felt bad for a second, but then I remembered what he had done and flashed him an angry look. He swallowed and looked down at his feet.

"How are you feeling now?" he asked.

"Not great. What happened to me, anyways?" I questioned, forgetting for the moment how angry I was with him. He rubbed the back of his neck and sighed.

"You got shot. I don't know who did it, though. I'm just so glad that you're all right…" He reached out to hold my hand but he pulled it back when I gave him a cold stare. He frowned and slumped down in his chair, tears shining in his eyes. I felt a little twinge of guilt right then but ignored it. Why did he have to be so cute? I didn't normally like hurting people, let alone cute guys. Good thing I have a brain, because if all I had was a heart, I would be an emotional mess. Right now, Darry didn't deserve my soft side or my sympathy. He betrayed my trust, and I wasn't going to just cave in and forgive him. He kissed my _sister_, for crying out loud!

He sighed and looked me right in the eyes.

"Look, Holly. I am really sorry for what I've done." I opened my mouth to interrupt him but he cut me off. "I know 'sorry' isn't enough. I messed up and there's no excuse for what I did. If I were you, I wouldn't forgive me either. I don't deserve it. But I just want you to know that I love you. I would do almost anything to take back what I did. I don't love her, I love you." He picked up a rose that was lying on the table and held it out to me. I didn't take it.

"You can't buy my forgiveness, Darry." His face fell as he pulled back the rose.

"I didn't mean it that way… I just…" he stopped and closed his eyes for a moment, then looked down at the rose. He was holding back tears and I started to feel bad. I was tired of hurting him, even if I was mad at him. I just wanted him to leave.

"Just go, Darry." I bit my lip. Oops. I said that a little too bitterly. A little tear slipped down his cheek.

"Holly…" his voice broke. I couldn't take this anymore. What I wanted to do right then was to be gentler with him and gently ask him to leave, but I was angry at myself for being too harsh and I accidentally took it out on him.

"JUST GO!" His shoulders slumped and his bottom lip trembled as he slowly stood up and walked to the door, leaving the rose on the table. He looked back at me one last time and left, casting me another sad look. I felt like the meanest person alive. I started tearing up. A nurse came in just then and I wiped my eyes.

"Why did you do that?" she asked, curious.

"Do what?"

"Kick him out?" I didn't answer. "That poor man has been there for you since you got hurt. He raced in here as soon as he was allowed to see you. He's hardly left your side. I can tell he really loves you." I frowned. She was right. I had been way too hard on him. I mean, he screwed up by kissing Rebecca, but he didn't deserve the way I crushed him every time he said something. And that wasn't just today. I did the same thing the last time I checked up on them.

I thought about what just happened. He had poured out his heart to me and got me a rose, and then I told him he couldn't buy my forgiveness. I knew that wasn't what he was trying to do. It was actually really sweet. I was just so stuck on being upset with him that I didn't even give him a chance to make it up to me. I looked over at the rose he left. I'd probably hurt him more than he'd hurt me by now…

I was done being mad at Darry. He apologized and proved that he really did love me and I could trust him again. I just wish I would've realized that before I threw him out…

The nurse's voice pulled me out of my thoughts. She told me that I was healing well and I should be able to go home tomorrow. I think she said something else but I wasn't really listening. I just kept thinking about Darry.

Later the next day, I looked over and saw him standing in the doorway, looking cautious. I think he was afraid that I would push him away.

"Come in," I said carefully. He slowly walked closer and sat back down in the chair next to me. He was quiet. "Hi, Darry." He looked surprised that I hadn't torn out his heart yet.

"Hi, Holly." He looked down at his feet. I felt horrible. He couldn't even look at me. It was my turn to apologize.

"Hey, Darry, I know… I know I didn't really listen to you yesterday. I was too busy being upset… and I'm sorry I snapped at you so much. I've been thinking about what you said, and I decided that I'm not really mad at you anymore. I guess what I'm trying to say is that I forgive you." His eyes were wide.

"Really?" He asked hopefully. I nodded.

"Yeah…" He smiled, his eyes lighting up.

"So, are we… I mean…" I reached up and caressed his cheek. He slowly leaned in closer and kissed me softly. I kissed him back, running a hand through his hair.

He pulled away and said, "I missed that… and I missed you."

"Ditto..." We kissed again. I looked into his beautiful blue-green eyes. "I don't know how I managed to stay so mad at you." He laughed and smiled ruefully.

"I probably deserved it." I shook my head.

"I love you, Darry." A joyful smile spread across his face. He was so handsome.

"I love you too, Holly." Our lips met in another sweet kiss. Then he changed the subject. "Are you feeling any better today?"

"I am now. I guess I can go home tomorrow or something."

"That's great!" Then I suddenly remembered. I got shot! I was so busy worrying about Darry; I forgot why I was in the hospital. Who shot me? I thought back to when it happened, but all I could remember is taking a walk when I heard a gunshot and felt a horrible pain.

Why would someone do that? I don't think I have any real enemies… do I?

"You really don't know who shot me?" Darry shook his head, looking regretful.

"No, I didn't see anyone. I have no idea who it could be, or how to find them. I'm sorry." I was tired of this. If he apologized one more time, I was going to kick his butt!

"It's okay. It's not your fault."

"But they're still out there. I don't want you getting hurt again." I smiled up at him.

"Don't worry, Superman. I know you'll protect me."

**A/N: Yeah, I was aiming to be done in 20 chapters, but I wanted to cut it off there. So there will probably be one more. Or two… I don't know. Who do you think shot her? Any ideas? What do you think happens next?**


	21. Another Typical Day at the Curtis House

**Darry POV**

I was so glad that she had forgiven me. Yesterday, I thought she hated me. I thought she was going to push me away again, but then she forgave me, just like that. I walked in the house with a big smile on my face. The whole gang was there, except for Dallas and Johnny. They all looked like they were about to burst out laughing. I realized why. Two-Bit was sitting in the armchair, reading the newspaper with a serious expression on his face. Then he slammed it down and took a sip of coffee and stood up, getting in Ponyboy's face.

"Get your homework done! And pull your grades up so you can get a scholarship! What's the matter with you, getting a B in algebra?" Pony grinned.

"Okay." Two-Bit jabbed at Pony's chest with his finger.

"Say, yes sir! And wipe that grin off your face!" Pony stopped smiling.

"Yes sir."

"That's better!" I started clapping slowly. Everyone looked over at me.

"Oh, I'm sorry, am I stealing your spotlight, 'Darry'?" I said sarcastically.

"Hey, Superman! I just thought someone should take your place while you were gone so things wouldn't get outta hand!" Two-Bit said, messing up Ponyboy's hair. Pony scowled and shoved him.

"Two-Bit was making fun of you, Darry!"

"Shhh, no I wasn't!" Steve stood up and pointed at Two-Bit.

"Yes he was! He even said, 'Hey, guys, you wanna see my new and improved Darry imitations?'"

"No I didn't!" Soda stood up and grabbed him by the shirt.

"May I remind you, sir that you are under oath?" Just then, Dally walked in.

"What did I miss this time?"

"Oh, the usual. Two-Bit made fun of Darry, Darry walked in and saw the whole thing, and now we're deciding how many years of jail time Two-Bit's getting," Sodapop explained keeping a straight face. For about five seconds, that is.

"Yeah," I said, putting Two-Bit in a headlock, "he's goin' away for a long time." He elbowed me in the ribs and everyone burst out laughing when Jailhouse Rock came on the radio. Then we all watched in amusement when Two-Bit jumped up on the table and started singing along. I was going to tell him not to stand on the table, but I didn't want to be the fun killer right then, so I just let him. When the song was over, he jumped off the table and ran into the kitchen, grabbing a beer from the fridge.

"You know what I could go for right now? Some of Sodapop's chocolate cake!" Dallas walked over and grabbed the beer out of Two-Bit's hand.

"That's the last thing you need."

"Hey! That's my beer! Get your own!"

"I don't see your name on it anywhere." He opened it up and took a sip.

"Aw, come on, Dallas!" Dally laughed and tried to hand it back.

"Okay, you can have it back now." Two-Bit eyed him coolly and took it, then threw it right in his face. Dally got a towel and wiped off his face.

"Hmmm… now where have I seen this before?" Two-Bit said, laughing hard. I laughed a little myself. I gotta admit; that was pretty funny. Dally gave him a hard look.

"Oh, do you think that's funny, huh, Keith?" Two-Bit stopped laughing and suddenly it was quiet.

"Did you just call me Keith?"

"Maybe I did, Keith. You don't like that, huh, Keith? How about it Keith? What ya gonna do, Keith? Keith, Keith, Keith!" Two-Bit shoved him.

"Don't call me that!" Dally shoved him back.

"I can call you whatever I want, Keith!" They stared each other down.

Then Steve yelled, "Hey, Two-Bit! Mickey's on TV!" Two-Bit hurriedly opened the fridge and got another beer and ran back into the living room, sitting down in front of the TV.

"You have the attention span of a goldfish!" Dally yelled.

"Shut up! I'm trying to watch Mickey!" Two-Bit shouted back. Dally ran in and stood right in front of the TV, blocking Two-Bit's view.

"Dallas! Move!"

"What's the magic word?"

"PLEASE!"

"Alright, alright, don't get all pushy. I'll move." I think the rest of us knew Dally wasn't done messing with Two-Bit. Dally sat down and took the TV remote off the coffee table and changed the channel. That did it.

"DALLAS WHAT-THE-HECK-IS-YOUR-MIDDLE-NAME WINSTON!"

"I ain't telling you. And it's my turn to pick something to watch."

"You never watch Star Trek!"

"I do now!" Two-Bit lunged for the remote but Dally kept it just out of his reach.

"Seriously, Dallas?" He reached for it again.

"Okay, here you go," Dally said, but pulled it back before Two-Bit could get it. "Oops!" Dally grinned evilly as he threw the remote right out the open window behind him. Two-Bit went wild and tried to tackle him, but he moved out of the way and Two-Bit landed face-first on the floor as Dally sprinted out the door. Two-Bit chased after him. The rest of us followed them outside to watch. Two-Bit was chasing Dally around the yard in circles.

"Come on, Dal, this isn't funny!" Dally laughed.

"If it ain't funny, then why am I laughing right now?" Johnny came up to join the rest of us. He had a funny look on his face.

"What the heck is goin' on?" I shook my head.

"You know somethin' kid? I ask myself that same question pretty much every day." They all seemed to get a kick out of that. Ponyboy laughed to himself, suddenly realizing something.

"Two-Bit knows he could've just changed the channel by pushing the button on the TV, right?"

"Apparently not!" Steve said with a huge grin on his face. Two-Bit got tired and he fell on the ground, panting hard.

"Okay… you… win…" Dally threw the remote in his face.

"That's what I thought." Two-Bit started slowly running back in the house.

"Hey, dufus, you do know you could've just pushed the little button on the TV, right?" Dally yelled after him. Two-Bit just shot him the bird and slammed the door behind him. Dally smirked and lit up a cigarette. "Man, I love bein' a jerk." Soda looked up at me.

"Just another typical day at the Curtis house, huh, Dar?" I smiled and threw an arm across his shoulders.

"Yeah, little buddy, it is."

**A/N: Okay, so maybe it will take me one or two more chapters to get done… oh well. This is a fun story to write. Review? **


	22. Holly and Darry Sittin' in a Tree

**Holly POV**

Darry picked me up from the hospital after work the next day to take me home. I was so glad to get out of there. When I got out of the car, I walked over to the other side of the car and looked at Darry through the window. He rolled down the window and smiled at me.

"What?" He opened the door and got out. I pulled him into a hug. He wrapped his arms around me and kissed the top of my head. I rested my head on his chest and listened to his heartbeat, closing my eyes. I missed him so much. I suddenly felt something wet fall on my head. Was it raining? I looked up and the sky was as clear as ever. Then I looked at Darry and saw that his eyes were a little wet. I ran a hand through his soft dark brown hair.

"What's wrong, Darry?" He smiled softly and shook his head.

"Nothing. I'm just so glad you're all right… I thought I was gonna lose you…" I touched my forehead to his.

"You can't get rid of me that easily." He let out a gentle laugh. I wrapped my arms around his neck and kissed him. "I love you, Superman." His eyes lit up. I knew he loved it when I called him Superman, even more than when anyone else did. It made him feel strong, like he could do almost anything. And you know what? I believed that he could too. He was the most amazing man I ever knew.

"I love you too," he said sincerely. His voice was strong and steady, his eyes like steel but so warm and full of love all at once.

Suddenly his eyes flickered like he had just remembered something. I looked at him curiously and he just held up his finger, telling me to wait. He opened the car door, looking for something. When he turned back to me, he held the rose in his hand. "There," he said, handing it back to me, "you almost forgot it." I smiled.

"Thank you, Darry." I wasn't just talking about the rose. He reached over and pushed a strand of hair behind my ear.

"You're welcome," he said, then leaned in and kissed me. "Well, I gotta go. My brothers are waiting…" I kissed his cheek.

"Okay. See you tomorrow?" He nodded.

"Yeah. Bye, Holly." I watched as he pulled out of the driveway and left.

"Goodbye, Darry," I whispered.

**Darry POV**

When I got home, I could smell something burning. I rolled my eyes. Now what? I walked in and found Two-Bit- you know what? I'm not even gonna finish that sentence. I'm pretty sure that we all know that Two-Bit + kitchen = disaster.

"Hey, Muscles! What are you doing here?" He had a big stupid grin on his face.

"This is my house. What the heck are you doing?"

"Well, you weren't home yet and your little brothers were starvin' something awful, so uncle Two-Bit came to the rescue!"

"My brothers know how to cook, and they knew I would be back from work soon after I brought Holly back home. And since when do you cook?" Sodapop and Ponyboy came running in.

"Oh, hey Darry! How's Holly doin'?" Sodapop greeted.

"She's fine. Now which one of you two wants to tell me why Two-Bit's in the kitchen unsupervised?" Two-Bit slapped me on the back.

"Aw, lighten up. Can't a guy try to do something nice for his buddies once in a while?" I looked at him blearily.

"And you think that burning our house down counts as doing something nice?" He feigned a look of hurt.

"Burn the house down? Aw, come on, Darry. I just thought that since you guys liked green pancakes so much, I thought it would be nice of me if I made them for you!" I rolled my eyes and grabbed the spatula out of his hands.

"Never cook in my house again." He threw his hands up in the air defensively.

"Okay, okay. Don't be mad. I guess I can leave the cooking to you guys since you just can't appreciate my beautiful works of love and friendship!" He stomped away into the living room, probably to watch TV.

Soda decided to make dinner so I sat down and tried to relax for once. I closed my eyes as my thoughts drifted to Holly… what should we do tomorrow? I nearly jumped when I opened my eyes and Two-Bit was right in my face, grinning like an idiot.

"Whatcha thinkin' about, Darry?"

"None of your business. Get out of my face," I said, pushing him away.

"Oh, yeah? I think I know what it is anyway!" He suddenly jumped up and ran into the kitchen and brought Pony and Soda in the room.

"Holly and Darry, sittin' in a tree K-I-S-S-I-N-G!"

"Yeah, real mature guys!" I yelled over them.

"First comes love, then comes…" I grabbed a pillow and threw it at his face to shut him up. Then I gave my brothers a hard stare and they ran back into the kitchen.

We all sat down to dinner a little later. I stared as Soda put a plate of red pancakes in front of me.

"Red, Soda?" He nodded.

"Yeah, we ran out of green dye, and we need to change it up once in a while, don't we? What's the fun in using the same old color all the time?"

"What about leaving them the normal color once in a while? Ever tried that?" Soda shook his head.

"Nah. I leave the boring stuff to you!" When he turned around to go to his seat, I put my leg out where he would trip over it. I laughed at him as he got up from the floor. "That was totally uncalled for! I'll tell Holly that my big brother tried to kill me! You wouldn't be laughin' then!"

"She wouldn't believe you over me, little buddy. She quit her job anyways." He stuck his tongue out at me. Two-Bit cocked an eyebrow.

"Who's your social worker, then?" I shrugged and poured some syrup on my pancakes. Ponyboy suddenly spoke up.

"Hey, Dar, if you and Holly get married, we wouldn't need a social worker anymore, would we?" There was a really awkward silence right then. I put my fork down. Marry Holly? I actually hadn't thought about it that often. It had only crossed my mind a few times since we started dating. I mean, I would marry her, but I had no idea when I would actually ask her. Would she even be ready for that yet?

But I think Pony was right about the social worker thing.

"You know, I think you're right about that, kiddo." He smiled and I knew he was thinking the same thing that I was. We wouldn't need a social worker if I got married. We wouldn't have to worry about the state breathing down our necks watching my every move anymore. With me, Holly, and Sodapop working full time jobs, it would be a lot easier to get by, too. Soda looked at us and clanked his glass with a fork to get our attention.

"Come on, guys. The pancakes aren't gonna eat themselves!"

I went to bed around 10:30 that night. I laid there staring up at the ceiling for a few minutes, just thinking. Suddenly that obnoxious song Two-Bit and my brothers were teasing me about ran through my mind.

_Holly and Darry, sittin' in a tree K-I-S-S-I-N-G! First comes love, then comes…_

_Marriage. _

I closed my eyes and fell asleep.


	23. The Proposal

**A few months later…**

Holly's birthday was next month and I knew just what I was going to do. I'd been saving some money and was planning to take her to a nice restaurant today and propose to her. I thought she would like it if we got married on her birthday… if she said yes. I took the ring box out of my pocket and opened it. I closed my eyes and imagined it on her finger. I hope she says yes. I put the box back in my pocket and looked at myself in the mirror, straightening my tie and running a comb through my hair again. I was ready for this. I heard a knock on the bathroom door.

"Hey, Darry, you done in there yet? You gotta pick Holly up in a few minutes," Soda said to me through the door. My eyes widened as I looked at my watch. 6:57? I told her I'd be there at 7:00! I threw open the door.

"Sodapop!" Soda raised an eyebrow at me and shrugged.

"What? Who said I had to keep track of time for you? You have a watch." I just glared at him and started running to the door.

"Darry, wait!" Pony called, holding out the keys for the truck. "Don't forget the keys." I cursed under my breath and took the keys.

"Thanks, kid. You guys will be all right?"

"We'll be fine, Dar. Don't worry about us. Good luck!" I nodded quickly and ran out the door to the truck. As I pulled out of the driveway and headed to Holly's house, only one thought went through my mind.

_I sure hope this goes well._

**Holly POV**

I looked at the clock. 7:05. Where is he? He said he'd be here at 7. Just then, I heard a knock at the door. I smiled. Probably my fashionably late boyfriend. I opened the door and there he was, as handsome as ever. He was wearing a black tux with his hair neatly combed back.

"Hi, Darry," I said with a smile. He was quiet for a second. "What?" I asked, wishing I had a mirror right now. Did I need to brush my hair more? Is there something in my teeth? Am I… He shook his head.

"You're just so… beautiful," he said, taking my hand in his. I blushed.

"Okay, Prince Charming, are you ready to go?"

When we got to the restaurant, we sat in a booth across from each other. A flashback from our first date went through my mind and I smiled.

"Sorry I was late," Darry apologized, looking a little embarrassed.

"It's okay, Darry. I still love you," I teased. He laughed little. I looked around a little and saw how fancy this restaurant really was. "How did you manage to afford this?" I asked him. He waved it off.

"Don't worry about it."

It was great. We talked and laughed together and the food was really good. It was definitely the nicest date I've ever been on, even nicer than the ones I was on with that… Soc. I started looking through my purse and was about to ask Darry how much I should pay when he got my attention.

"Holly… I need to talk to you." I looked up at him questioningly.

"What is it?" Whatever it is, it must be very important. I'd never seen him look this serious. He took my hands in his. I looked into his eyes and I was almost taken aback. There was more love in his eyes than I'd ever seen before.

"Holly, I love you so much." I squeezed his hand gently.

"I love you too, Darry. I always will."

"When I first met you I tried not to fall in love with you because I was hurt before, and I'm so glad I changed my mind. You've loved me since day one. You forgave me in time, even after the horrible thing I did. I knew I didn't deserve your forgiveness, but my heart was broken without you. And after I'd almost lost you forever, I was sure that I didn't want to live without you." By now I had lost count of how many times I wanted to hug him that night.

"Oh, Darry…" he put a finger over my lips before I could finish.

"Holly… I've been thinking about this for a while now and I wanted to ask…" I felt frozen in place as I watched him kneel down and pull a small velvet box out of his pocket. Was he…

"Holly Marie Jensen… will you marry me?" He opened the box then, revealing a beautiful diamond ring. I was totally speechless. Tears filled my eyes. I could hardly believe this was actually happening. "Well?" he pressed, a slight fear of rejection now showing in his eyes. I fell to my knees in front of him and caressed his cheek.

"Yes," I answered, finally finding my voice. A huge smile crossed his face.

"Yes?" I threw my arms around his neck and kissed him.

"Yes!" I held out my hand and he slipped the ring on my finger. As he leaned in and kissed me, I could hear the other people in the restaurant clapping and I blushed a little. Just then, the waitress came to collect the bill.

"Congratulations to both of you." Darry smiled.

"Thank you." I looked away and pushed a strand of hair behind my ear, feeling a little embarrassed. Darry took my hand as we walked back to the truck. Then he opened the door for me and I got in and sat down, smiling at him. He winked at me and closed the door, and then climbed in the driver's seat beside me. I studied the ring on my finger as he drove me back home. It suddenly hit me then. I was going to marry him. My Darry. He glanced over at me.

"You like it?"

"It's beautiful. I love you." He grinned.

"I hope so. You did agree to marry me," he joked. I rolled my eyes and pushed him a little. He just laughed.

When we got back to my house, he decided to stay for a few minutes before he went home. He sat down on the couch next to me and held me close. I rested my head on his shoulder.

"When?" I asked, looking up at him.

"When what?" he questioned, kissing my neck gently. I giggled.

"When are we going to get married?" He smiled warmly.

"What do you think about… August 17th?"

"Next month? On my birthday?" He nodded. I reached up and gently traced the fading scar on his cheek. "Okay," I whispered, kissing him lovingly. I think I fell even more in love with him every time we kissed. I started stroking his hair when he suddenly broke the kiss and stared at me.

"You know, you're a much better kisser than your sister," he said, winking at me.

"I try." He chuckled and brought his lips to mine as we shared a long, passionate kiss.

"I love you," he murmured, touching his forehead to mine.

"I hope so. You did ask me to marry you," I said smartly. He just smiled softly and held me closer. After a few minutes, though, he stood up, saying that he should go home and check on his brothers. I gave him a hug and one last kiss. "Bye, Darry." He waved at me and I watched until his truck was completely out of sight. I sighed and looked down at my engagement ring. I don't think I've ever been so excited for my birthday before in my whole life.

**Darry POV**

As soon as I stepped in the door when I got home, my brothers were there in an instant, wondering what happened.

"Well, Darry, what did she say?" I nodded as a giant smile spread across my face.

"That's great, Dar!" Pony congratulated. They both looked kind of relieved. I guess they must have been worried about what I would have done if she said no. I didn't really blame them after what happened last time with Rebecca. But that wasn't exactly the same situation. I yawned.

"Well, guys, I think I'm gonna go to bed." I started to walk away when Soda stopped me.

"Wait a minute, when's the wedding?"

"August 17th," I answered, still smiling. Soda grinned and patted me on the back.

"Goodnight, Darry." I went to my room and took my suit off as I climbed into bed. Then I drifted off to sleep, feeling more content than I have in a while.

_She said yes._

**A/N: Please review… I really would like to have at least five per chapter… **


	24. Finally

**Holly POV**

I woke up the morning of my birthday, having almost the same feeling you have when you wake up on Christmas morning. The only thing was that I would have to wait a little while longer than 6 in the morning to get my present. Okay, it's not Christmas, it's my birthday/wedding day, but it's close to that same kind of feeling. I was excited but really anxious too. I could hardly wait. I was marrying the man of my dreams. Darry…

**Darry POV**

I was sleeping peacefully when I felt someone shaking me.

"Hey, Darry, wake up!" I rolled over, wanting to sleep a little longer. "Come on, you do want to show up for your own wedding, don't ya?" Boy, did that get my attention. I snapped my eyes open and shot up real quick. Sodapop looked slightly startled, but then he smiled. "Gee, Dar, you're fine! You didn't sleep that long!" I looked at the clock. 6:30 AM. I shot him a look.

"Never do that again." He just laughed and walked out. I rubbed my eyes and stretched as I walked into the bathroom. I looked in the mirror and saw that my hair was a complete mess. I started looking for a comb, but couldn't find one. I frowned. _Why can't I find a comb in a house full of greasers?_ Sodapop walked up to the door.

"Hey, are you gonna eat breakfast or what? It's the most important meal of the day y'know!" I rolled my eyes. Since when did he get so hyper in the morning?

"Soda, I just got up. I'll be there in a minute, okay?"

"Nice hair, Darry," Soda said with a goofy grin on his face. I ruffled his hair.

"Sorry I don't wake up with a perfect hairdo like you, kiddo," I said dryly.

"Hey! Well it's not perfect anymore!" He pulled a comb out of his pocket to fix his hair, but I grabbed it out of his hand before he could. "Aw, come on, Darry! I don't want your hair germs all over my comb!" I gave him a funny look and pushed him out the door, slamming it in his face. "Fine, Darry, be that way!" I could hear him stomping away and I thought, _hair germs? That kid's been around Two-Bit too long. _

When I finished fixing my hair I walked into the kitchen and sighed. Ponyboy and Soda were eating cake for breakfast _again._

"Hey guys, when was the last time we had real food for breakfast?" Don't get me wrong, I love chocolate cake, but I'm getting a little tired of having junk food every morning. Sodapop gaped at me incredulously.

"This _is_ real food, Dar!" I was about to argue with him when Two-Bit burst in the door.

"Honey, I'm home!" He laughed and threw an arm around my shoulders. "Ready for the big day, Dare-Bear?" I swear, I was very close to smacking that kid. I shrugged him off.

"Don't call me that." Seriously, if anyone gave me another stupid nickname… I remembered the time Steve called me 'all brawn and no brain'. I punched that kid so hard that it nearly broke his jaw. Even Soda got mad at him for what he said. I'm still a little upset about not being able to go to college. Then, there was that time not too long ago when Pony and Soda ended up getting the whole gang to call me 'Puffle'. It hadn't come up again since that day, but I wasn't going to hold my breath.

"Lighten up, Darry. Your girlfriend might not want to marry you if you get too grumpy!" Two-Bit winked at me, punching my arm. I shook my head and rolled my eyes. Thanks to our crazy friends, this would probably be one… _interesting_ wedding.

**Holly POV**

We had a fairly small wedding at a church. A lot of people like having big, expensive weddings, but Darry can't afford that and I don't really mind anyways. I never really liked big crowds, either. It wouldn't matter either way though. I know this is really cliché, but I don't care where the wedding is, I'm happy as long as we get married today. Most of my family was going and so were Darry's friends and his brothers.

My parents actually remembered Darry. They knew about the time Rebecca broke his heart, and they were pretty upset when they first heard about it. They had gotten along with him well, and they thought his parents were great too. I don't know why I didn't know Darry when I met him. I guess maybe it was because I hadn't seen him when he was dating my sister. Anyway, Mom and Dad were really glad when they heard that I was marrying Darry.

I wasn't sure if Rebecca was coming, and I nearly fell over when I found out that she was. Things were a little awkward and tense between us since, uh, you know, and a part of me didn't want her to come, but she _is_ my sister, and I reluctantly forgave her after she apologized about ten times since Darry and I got back together.

I was so happy when it was finally time for the wedding. I kept my eyes fixed on Darry as I walked down the aisle. I remembered when I was a teenager in high school and no guys ever seemed to notice me, and it didn't help that Rebecca was an attention hog, and I was the quiet one. I've actually only had a few boyfriends before Darry, and they weren't all that great. I was the one that broke up with them. But now, here I am, only a few feet away from marrying my true love-Darry Curtis. He seemed cold and unfeeling the first time I saw him, but once I really got to know him, he let me into his heart, and now he's always so sweet. I made it up to the altar and I looked at him- he was so handsome when he smiled, his eyes full of warmth and love.

"Do you, Darrel Shaynne Curtis Jr., take this woman to be your lawfully wedded wife, to have and to hold, in sickness and in health, till death do you part?"

"I do," he answered with confidence, looking straight into my eyes. I think I might have been blushing a little.

"And do you, Holly Marie Jensen, take this man to be your husband, to have and to hold, in sickness and in health, till death do you part?" I looked at Darry, knowing this was it; this was the man I would be with forever. And I wanted forever to start as soon as possible.

"I do."

"I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss the bride." As soon as Darry's lips touched mine, I was sure that this was the best kiss we'd shared so far.

"Happy birthday," he whispered.

"I promised myself I wouldn't cry!" Two-Bit said, blowing his nose loudly. Darry rolled his eyes and I laughed.

"I love your crazy friends." He grinned at that.

"Yeah, well you don't have to put up with them every day," he joked. I smiled and kissed his cheek.

"I love you."

"I love you too, Mrs. Curtis."

**Darry POV**

Holly moved into our house not long after we got married, and she was able to get a new job as a waitress at the restaurant I proposed to her. Also, we were all happy that since I was married, we didn't have to have a social worker anymore. I really haven't been this relaxed for a long time.

It was a quiet night. Ponyboy and Sodapop had already gone to bed, and I just laid in bed and waited for Holly to be done in the bathroom. Women. Do they really think they need to get all dolled up just to go to bed at night?

"Hey, Darry," she said as she climbed in bed next to me.

"Hey," I mumbled, kissing her gently. She smiled and snuggled up closer to me. It felt so nice not to be alone at night. Before, I would just be so exhausted and tired from work, and to tell you the truth, sometimes a little lonely. Having someone else there was… comforting.

"It's amazing, you know that, Darry?"

"What?" I asked, wondering what she was talking about.

"Just… I never thought I would end up marrying someone like you. I used to think all greasers were like Tim Shepard or Dallas, but you actually have a nice little gang. Two-Bit's funny, Johnny's quiet, your brothers are great kids, Sodapop's best friend Steve… even Dallas is okay sometimes. And you… you're the sweetest man I've ever known."

"I don't know about that…" I sighed. I wouldn't say that description fit me too well. It fit Sodapop better than me. According to Ponyboy when he wrote his theme, I was basically a robot with no feelings. Of course, he doesn't think that anymore, but you get my point. I also tend to lose my temper easily when I get angry.

"I mean it, Darry, you really are." I smiled.

"Well, I never thought I would ever meet a nice social worker either… I thought they were all mean and hated everything."

"Not all of them are like that. They're actually supposed to be nice and want to help you. I think you just ran into some bad luck with that other guy, that's all."

"I guess my luck finally changed, then. I might have lost my brothers if it wasn't for you."

"He actually quit, you know…"

"I know. That doesn't matter. I love you so much…" I reached over and pushed a strand of hair behind one of her ears.

"I love you too, Darry." We kissed again, but this time it was a lot longer and more passionate. I was glad we weren't standing, because I don't think my legs would've been able to hold me up. She pulled away and giggled at the disappointed look on my face, stroking my hair. "Goodnight, sweetheart."

"Goodnight, Holly." She wrapped her arms around me.

"My Superman," she whispered, and soon she was sound asleep. A lot of unexpected things have happened to me in the past couple years, good and bad, (well, mostly bad), but this is by far the best thing that's ever happened to me. My wife.

**The End**

**A/N: Wow, I finally finished it! :D I hope you all enjoyed it. Sorry it took me so long to update. I originally wanted to get it done in December, but Christmas was a little distracting, then I wasn't able to get it done last month either… stupid writer's block! :P I'm thinking about making a little one-shot for Darry and Holly in the future, so make sure to keep an eye out for that! Thanks for all the reviews! **


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